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Related papers: Interstellar Objects in the Solar System

200 papers

Unexpected dynamic phenomena have surprised solar system observers in the past and have led to important discoveries about solar system workings. Observations at the initial stages of these events provide crucial information on the physical…

1I/2017 U1 (`Oumuamua), a recently discovered asteroid in a hyperbolic orbit, is likely the first macroscopic object of extrasolar origin identified in the solar system. Here, we present imaging and spectroscopic observations of…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2017-12-20 Quan-Zhi Ye , Qicheng Zhang , Michael S. P. Kelley , Peter G. Brown

The first discovered interstellar small object, `Oumuamua (1I/2017 U1), presents unique physical properties of extremely elongated geometric shape and dual characteristics of an asteroid and a comet. These properties suggest a possible…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2025-02-12 Xi-Ling Zheng , Ji-Lin Zhou

'Oumuamua was discovered passing through our Solar System on a hyperbolic orbit. It presents an apparent contradiction, with colors similar to those of volatile-rich Solar System bodies but with no visible outgassing or activity during its…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2018-04-04 Sean N. Raymond , Philip J. Armitage , Dimitri Veras

Interstellar objects such as 1I/'Oumuamua and 2I/Borisov offer a unique window into the formation and evolution of other star systems, yet the tracking and analysis of their trajectories remain limited to specialized research institutions.…

Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics · Physics 2025-12-10 Pancha Narayan Sahu

The first discovered interstellar object (ISO), `Oumuamua (1I/2017 U1) shows a dry and rocky surface, an unusually elongated short-to-long axis ratio $c/a \lesssim 1/6$, a low velocity relative to the local standard of rest ($\sim 10$ km…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2020-04-16 Yun Zhang , Douglas N. C. Lin

The low velocity of interstellar asteroid 1I/'Oumuamua with respect to our galaxy's Local Standard of Rest implies it is young. Adopting the young age hypothesis, we assess possible origin systems for this interstellar asteroid and for…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2020-03-18 Tim Hallatt , Paul Wiegert

If interstellar objects originate in protoplanetary disks, they can be used to calibrate the fraction of mass that such disks eject. The discoveries of interstellar objects 1I/`Oumuamua and 2I/Borisov, taken together with rogue planets…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2021-09-01 Amir Siraj , Abraham Loeb

Comet 2I/Borisov, the first unambiguous interstellar comet ever found, was discovered in August 2019 at $\sim3$ au from the Sun on its inbound leg. No pre-discovery detection beyond 3 au has yet been reported, mostly due to the comet's…

We study the dynamical properties of objects in hyperbolic orbits passing through the inner Solar system in the context of two different potential sources: interstellar space and the Oort cloud. We analytically derive the probability…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2020-01-08 Arika Higuchi , Eiichiro Kokubo

1I/'Oumuamua is the first interstellar object observed passing through the Solar System. Understanding the nature of these objects will provide crucial information about the formation and evolution of planetary systems, and the…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2018-08-22 F. Almeida-Fernandes , H. J. Rocha-Pinto

In two recent papers published in MNRAS, Namouni and Morais (2018, 2020) claimed evidence for the interstellar origin of some small Solar System bodies, including i) objects in retrograde co-orbital motion with the giant planets, and ii)…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2020-06-17 A. Morbidelli , K. Batygin , R. Brasser , S. Raymond

Long range observations in the field of astronomy have opened up our understanding of the Solar System, the Galaxy and the wider Universe. In this paper we discuss the idea of direct in-situ reconnaissance of nearby stellar systems, using…

Popular Physics · Physics 2019-01-15 Kelvin F Long

1I/'Oumuamua is the first interstellar interloper to be detected, and it shows a non-gravitational acceleration that cannot be accounted for by outgassing, given the strict upper limits of outgassing evident from {\it Spitzer} observations,…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2019-04-24 Amaya Moro-Martín

We study the origin of the interstellar object 1I/2017 U1 'Oumuamua by juxtaposing estimates based on the observations with simulations. We speculate that objects like 'Oumuamua are formed in the debris disc as left over from the star and…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2018-06-13 Simon Portegies Zwart , Santiago Torres , Inti Pelupessy , Jeroen Bedorf , Maxwell Cai

Observed hyperbolic minor bodies might have an interstellar origin, but they can be natives of the Solar system as well. Fly-bys with the known planets or the Sun may result in the hyperbolic ejection of an originally bound minor body; in…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2018-03-20 C. de la Fuente Marcos , R. de la Fuente Marcos , S. J. Aarseth

The discovery of the first two macroscopic interstellar objects (ISOs) passing through the Solar System has opened entirely new perspectives in planetary science. The exploration of these objects offers a qualitatively new insight into the…

Earth and Planetary Astrophysics · Physics 2023-01-24 Dušan Marčeta

The first definite interstellar object observed in our solar system was discovered in October of 2017 and was subsequently designated 1I/'Oumuamua. In addition to its extrasolar origin, observations and analysis of this object indicate some…

Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics · Physics 2021-02-03 Adam Hibberd , Andreas M. Hein

The detections of 1I/Oumuamua and 2I/Borisov within just two years demonstrate impressively that interstellar objects (ISOs) must be common in the Milky Way. Once released from their parent system, these ISOs travel for Gyr through…

Astrophysics of Galaxies · Physics 2020-11-18 Susanne Pfalzner , Melvyn B. Davies , Giorgi Kokaia , Michele Bannister

Interstellar objects (ISOs), the parent population of 1I/Oumuamua and 2I/Borisov, are abundant in the interstellar medium of the Milky Way. This means that the interstellar medium, including molecular cloud regions, has three components:…

Astrophysics of Galaxies · Physics 2021-11-24 Susanne Pfalzner , Dylan Paterson , Michele T. Bannister , Simon Portegies Zwart