Was the Mysterious Interstellar Object an Alien Probe or Just a Meteor?
In 2017, astronomers spotted something strange moving through our solar system. It wasn’t acting like a comet or an asteroid, and it didn’t come from around here. This mysterious interstellar object had travelled from another star system and zipped past the Sun at incredible speed. Some scientists wondered — could it be an alien space probe?
Its official name was ʻOumuamua, which means “scout” or “messenger” in Hawaiian. But this wasn’t your typical space rock. It was oddly shaped, unlike anything we’d seen before — more like a long, thin cigar than a round asteroid. It also sped up slightly as it moved away from the Sun, which made no sense if it was just a rock. Naturally, that raised eyebrows in the scientific world.
So what was it? Some researchers suggested it might be a comet that had lost its tail, or a broken fragment from another planet. Others went a bit further and asked, what if it was built — not formed? Could this unidentified space object be a spacecraft from another civilisation, passing through unnoticed?
Now let’s explore the facts, the theories, and the wild ideas behind this mysterious space visitor.
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