The Space Wanderer Visited the Solar System

The space visitor to A / 2017 U1, which is an interstellar object, visited our solar system this fall.

His maximum rapprochement with the Sun took place on September 9, and the speed of the object at the same time was 156,400 km / h relative to the Sun.

Astronomers are sure that this object first visited our solar system and, perhaps, it will never appear in our surroundings again.

Object A / 2017 U1 was discovered by researchers using the Pan-STARRS 1 telescope located in Hawaii.

“We have been waiting for a meeting with such an object for many decades,” said Paul Chodas, manager of the Center for Near Earth Objects Research (NASA).

“In theory, we knew that such objects exist, but we have never had to face them. For us, this is the first such discovery, “he added.

Based on the preliminary conclusion, scientists can say that the detected interstellar object has a hyperbolic orbit.

Astronomers suggest that the A / 2017 U1 may be a distant asteroid or comet that accidentally flew into our solar system.

“At the moment we can not say exactly where this object came from, but we will work on checking different versions,” said study participant Matthew Holman.

It is assumed that the diameter of A / 2017 U1 is about 400 meters. September 2, he crossed the orbit of Mercury, and a week later as close as possible to the Sun.

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