| LC control no. | sh2020005532 |
|---|---|
| Topical heading | Interstellar objects |
| Variant(s) | Objects, Interstellar |
| See also | Interstellar matter |
| Found in | Work cat: 2020023329: Loeb, A. Extraterrestrial, 2021: CIP galley (Attempts to answer the question, "Are we alone in the universe?" Most of the evidence this book wrestles with was collected over eleven days, starting on October 19, 2017. That was the length of time we had to observe the first known interstellar visitor, 'Oumuamua; originally designated 1I/2017 U1) International Astronomical Union web site, viewed May 26, 2020 (On 19 October 2017, an "interstellar asteroid" was discovered. As the new object did not fit into any of the existing IAU designation schemes, it was necessary for a new one to be defined. The IAU Minor Planet Center, is responsible for identifying, designating and computing the orbit for minor planets, comets and outer irregular natural satellites of the major planets. The MPC proposed to the IAU Executive Committee that they adopt a designation scheme similar to the one used for comets and asteroids (characterised by the letters "C" and "A" respectively), using the letter "I" standing for "interstellar". The IAU Executive Committee approved the proposal in less than 24 hours and the new object is now officially known as 1I/2017 U1. In addition to the technical designation, the MPC also exceptionally assigned the name 'Oumuamua to the new object, as proposed by the Pan-STARRS team. In Hawaiian 'Oumuamua means "a messenger from afar arriving first" that quite appropriately reflects the nature of the object and its discovery) Wikipedia, May 26, 2020 Interstellar objects (An interstellar object is an astronomical object (such as an asteroid, a comet, or a rogue planet, but not a star) that is located in interstellar space and is not gravitationally bound to a star. This term can also be applied to an object that is on an interstellar trajectory but is temporarily passing close to a star, such as certain asteroids and comets (including exocomets). In the latter case, the object may be called an interstellar interloper) |
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