They suggest where and when Oumuamua, the first known interstellar object in our solar system, originated

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June 4, 2021 03:10 GMT

According to the calculations of the team of scientists at Yale University, it will be about 35 million years old.

A team of astronomers at Yale University said in a paper accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal and can reach In the arXiv repository.

To determine the object’s age, scientists compared its trajectory to the orbits of 50,899 F-type stars, which are adjacent to the Sun. Based on this data, they estimated that it contains About 35 million years ago.

Regarding the location of the most appropriate molecular clouds, the study authors noted that it is “more likely” that they originated In Kareena Animation or in Columba Star League.

Although the calculations are “approximate”, they allow to hypothesize the origin of the object, the researchers believe. In particular, they noted, the age of the asteroid is “comparable to the age of the molecular cloud,” a huge group of molecules in a gaseous state whose mass can exceed the mass of the Sun by thousands of times. In this regard, they point out big density An asteroid estimate ‘better understood if the origin of ‘Oumuamua can be attributed to a process of formation Inhabited in the heart of a molecular cloud And it does not include the Prostellar tablets.”

Hydrogen or nitrogen?

When such a possibility is mentioned, astronomers defend idea discussed of which the object is made hydrogen ice. As an alternative, they suggest it can be made nitrogen ice Resulting from effects on Pluto-like nitrogen-covered bodies In exoplanet systems“.

“This hypothesis satisfies the dynamic and photometric limitations, but requires a very high rate of such collisions,” the authors explain.

However, the origin of the asteroid remains uncertain. “It is very likely that solving the mystery will require observing other things similar to Oumuamua,” the scientists noted.

The nature The de Oumuamua (which means “first messenger” in the Hawaiian language) has been surrounded by mysteries since it was discovered by astronomers at the University of Hawaii in 2017. Even because of its strange shape and unusual behavior, it has led some scientists to question whether it was space probe.

Oumuamua traveled through space for millions of years before entering the solar system. It has now crossed the orbit of Saturn and, according to estimates, will travel another 10,000 years before exiting the system.

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