Space Exploration
Oct 16, 2019
Hubble Telescope zooms in on interstellar visitor
The Hubble Space Telescope has captured the best pictures yet of our newest interstellar visitor.
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Astronomy
Sep 16, 2019
The visible spectrum of C/2019 Q4 (Borisov), the first confirmed interstellar comet
Shortly before dawn on September 13th, Julia de León, Miquel Serra-Ricart, Javier Licandro, all members of IAC's solar system Group, and Carlos Raúl de la Fuente Marcos, from the Complutense University of Madrid, obtained ...
Astronomy
Jul 1, 2019
'Oumuamua is not an alien spacecraft: study
On October 19, 2017, astronomers discovered the first known interstellar object to visit our solar system. First spotted by the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System 1 (PanSTARRS1) telescope located at the ...
Space Exploration
Jun 20, 2019
ESA's new mission to intercept a comet
"Comet Interceptor" has been selected as ESA's new fast-class mission in its Cosmic Vision Programme. Comprising three spacecraft, it will be the first to visit a truly pristine comet or other interstellar object that is ...
Astronomy
May 28, 2019
Stolen comets and free-floating objects
Our solar system may contain alien comets that were stolen from another star flying past 4.5 billion years ago. Far away in a distant cluster of young stars, a similar close encounter might have also sent the inter-stellar ...
Space Exploration
Mar 22, 2019
Why dangerous asteroids heading to Earth are so hard to detect
Earth is often in the firing line of fragments of asteroids and comets, most of which burn up tens of kilometres above our heads. But occasionally, something larger gets through.
Astronomy
Mar 12, 2019
What scientists found after sifting through dust in the solar system
Just as dust gathers in corners and along bookshelves in our homes, dust piles up in space too. But when the dust settles in the solar system, it's often in rings. Several dust rings circle the Sun. The rings trace the orbits ...
Astronomy
Feb 28, 2019
Exiled planet linked to stellar flyby three million years ago
Some of the peculiar aspects of our solar system—an enveloping cloud of comets, dwarf planets in weird orbits and, if it truly exists, a possible Planet Nine far from the sun—have been linked to the close approach of another ...
Space Exploration
Jan 28, 2019
Missing-link in planet evolution found
For the first time ever, astronomers have detected a 1.3 km radius body at the edge of the solar system. Kilometer-sized bodies like the one discovered have been predicted to exist for more than 70 years. These objects acted ...
Astronomy
Jan 11, 2019
Interstellar objects like 'Oumuamua probably crash into the sun every 30 years
On October 19th, 2017, the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System-1 (Pan-STARRS-1) in Hawaii announced the first-ever detection of an interstellar object, named 1I/2017 U1 (aka. 'Oumuamua). In the months that ...
