The First Interstellar Object to Visit Us Is More Incredible Than We Ever Expected
The first asteroid observed visiting our Solar System from elsewhere isn’t just unusual in its interstellar origin.
It’s also unlike any other asteroid we’ve seen before. Astronomers have trained a flurry of telescopes on the object discovered last month, and now we’re being rewarded with super-exciting details.
Newly named ‘Oumuamua, the asteroid is up to 400 metres (0.25 miles) long, and is distinctly cigar-shaped. It could be up to 10 times as long as it is wide – a shape never before seen in an asteroid.