The community of astronomers is in turmoil at the moment following the sudden appearance of a celestial body which currently rushes towards the interior of the solar system.
If the specialists are so enthusiastic about it, it is because of its unusual origin: this Wednesday, July 2, ESA confirmed that it Arrived straight for interstellar space, far from the influence of our sun.
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Astronomers may have just discovered the third interstellar object passing through the Solar System!
ESA’s Planetary Defenders are observing the object, provisionally known as #A11pl3Zright now using telescopes around the world.
— ESA Operations (@esaoperations) July 2, 2025
A very rare event
These objects are exceptionally rare. Indeed, the vast majority of celestial bodies identified by astronomers are gravitational linked to our star: they orbit around it and are not fast enough to escape from its zone of influence. Before this summer, Only two objects that do not correspond to this definition had been identified.
The very first, discovered in 2017, was a strange piece of oblong rock called IMAURE. At the time, he sparked a real battle of combat among astronomers, because of its unprecedented origin, but also of its curious characteristics to say the least. In addition to its unusual form, he was also surprised in the process of accelerating slightly in a way that gravity alone was not enough to explain.
This has led some observers to speculate that it could be an artificial object, potentially sent to our cosmic vicinity by an extraterrestrial species. Other more plausible theories have emerged since, such as the exhaust of a natural gas trapped in the rock – but it was unfortunately impossible to verify it. Indeed, ʻoumuamua moved very quickly (about 87 km/s) and was already out of our solar system when it was detected. Astronomers therefore did not have the opportunity to observe it rigorously to answer these questions and determine its origin.
On the other hand, we were more likely with the second interstellar visitor, the comet 2i/borisov. Since it was detected much earlier, astronomers were able to collect a large amount of data about it. She notably taught us that interstellar comets can present a chemistry very similar to that of the solar system comets, and that it is probably a common process in the whole of our galaxy.
A superb observation opportunity
The discovery of this new object, called A11PL3Z, supports the latter supposition. Because even if it is still located several hundred millions of kilometers from the sun, in the orbit of Jupiter, the specialists have already been able to determine that it was a relatively typical comet.
These preliminary data could notably be collected thanks to the significant measurements of the object. According to Avi Loeb, a renowned astronomer who has published a ticket on this subject The Debriefil is about 10 million times heavier than Umuamua, and also 100 to 200 times larger than the latter. Its diameter, estimated at approximately 20 kilometersoffers it a surface large enough to reflect a large amount of light, which greatly facilitates observations.
And this is very good news: it means that it will be No doubt possible to get a lot of information before his departureespecially when it increases around 210 million kilometers from the sun at the end of October. A distance certainly enormous in the absolute, but quite reasonable when it comes to conducting advanced observations with advanced telescopes.
These upcoming observations are already fascinating. The visit of this new interstellar object represents a superb opportunity to study the diversity of materials in our galaxy. The analysis of its composition, its structure and its trajectory, in particular, could well reveal precious clues to the processes that shape planetary environments beyond our cosmic cradle. So we meet you in a few months to find out more about this intruder from the depths of the space.
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