For the first time ever, Astronomers have detected an Interstellar Asteroid flying off through our solar systems. This is the most unusual Asteroid ever to be spotted.
One of the most powerful and advanced telescope, The Pan-STARRS 1 telescope in Hawaii discovered the object, named A/2017 U1, on 18th of October. Many other observations from other telescopes around the world suggest the object’s trajectory is at an unusually steep angle to the plane on which all the planets lie, and it does not orbit the sun rather orbits around another star system under which our solar system lies. The data gathered from A/2017 U1 asteroids observation suggests it is not a part of our solar system, rather is a new visitor to the solar system and it belongs to some other system of stars and it will go out of the solar boundaries after completion of its revolution period.
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| Portrait of an Interstellar Asteroid Belt |
It is so important because it is not a part of our solar system and hence is a rare one to be seen.
Other asteroids previously known belong to our solar system only and revolve around our Sun. Even comets, which come from a distant reservoir of icy rocks in the solar system called the Oort cloud and can have highly titled orbits, still orbit the sun. However the orbit of A/2017 U1 tells that it does not encircles our Sun.
Astronomers however first indicated the object as a comet due to its elongated path, but after many other observations from different telescopes around the world, the Astronomer community considered A/2017 U1 to be an asteroid . The observations revealed that the object looked like a single, sharp point of light, suggesting it is not a comet, which would have an extended icy halo around it. The asteroid is probably no more than 400 meters across and is passing through the solar system at a speed of 25.5 kilometers per second.
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| Orbital Trajectory of A/2017 U1 Asteroid |
The new data fro the observations also supported that its wacky trajectory, suggesting the object truly is a visitor from beyond. “It’s now looking very promising,” says planetary scientist Michele Bannister of Queen’s University Belfast in Northern Ireland, although she would still like to get more data to be sure. Astronomers are already planning to measure the colors in the asteroid’s reflected light to figure out what it’s made of, a clue to its origins. These Study will reveal its past data and also be able to identify the nature of its star system from which it had came.
The chances of observing this Asteroid in future is not merely known. We still don't know whether we will be able to see it in future or not. So its more likely to be a one time shot.
