Large Object From Interstellar Space Detected Heading Toward Center of Solar System
If its interstellar origins were to be confirmed, it'd only be the third of its kind spotted in the solar system in history. An oblong interstellar object, dubbed 'Oumuamua, was first discovered in 2017, while comet 2I/Borisov was detected in 2019.
The latest addition, provisionally named A11pl3Z, has a highly unusual trajectory, leading astronomers to believe it may have also originated from outside our star system.
The object was added to the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center's list of confirmed Near-Earth Objects on July 1, as EarthSky reports. NASA and the Jet Propulsion Lab also list it as a near-Earth object.
Scientists estimate it could be up to 12 miles across. It could also set a new speed record, ripping by the Earth with a relative velocity of around 56 miles per second, according to radio astronomer Marshall Eubanks.
It's still far too early to tell what A11pl3Z actually is. Could it be a comet, like 2I/Borisov, a celestial object made of ice, dust, and small rock particles? Or could it be an asteroid, ejected from a distant star system to end up in our own?
In any case, it's an exciting new discovery that could allow scientists to glean new insights into the nature of interstellar space and the alien worlds that populate it.
Understandably, astronomers are thrilled to find out more about the unusual visitor.
"After a few more precovery observations, and followups, it became clear this object is on a hyperbolic trajectory through the solar system," Catalina Sky Survey astronomer David Rankin wrote in a post on Bluesky, noting that its trajectory has "by far the highest eccentricity of any object ever discovered."
According to Rankin, the object's eccentricity is around 6.05. In simple terms, that means it's taking far more of a "straight" path through the solar system than any object we've ever found.
Our friend at Atlas seem to have discovered the 3rd interstellar object deep in the milky way. Precovery data going back to June 25th is leaving little doubt. With an eccentricity near 10, this is like nothing seen before. Comet is screaming by us. 🔭🧪
— David Rankin (@asteroiddave.bsky.social) 2025-07-02T02:24:56.328Z
"This is only the 3rd interstellar object ever discovered," Rankin wrote in a followup post. "'Oumuamua was the first with an eccentricity of ~1.02. Then came comet 2I/Borisov with an eccentricity of ~3.35. This object has an eccentricity of around 6, much higher than both of the previous "I" objects.
"A really neat find," he added.
A11pl3Z will make a "semi-close" encounter of Mars in October and Jupiter in March of next year, Rankin said. Neither of these passes "will meaningfully affect its orbit."
The blazing object will also pose no danger to Earth, as Ars Technica points out, since we will be on the other side of the Sun when it makes its next close encounter with our planet.
It'll likely take some time until we can learn more about A11pl3Z. Besides, even the two previous interstellar visitors astronomers have spotted remain shrouded in mystery. Scientists still disagree about 'Oumuamua's exact origin story, almost eight years after it was spotted by astronomers using a telescope in Hawaii. Some claim it's an asteroid, while others say it's a comet.
One less conventional explanation: if Harvard astronomer Avi Loeb is to be believed, the 300-to-3,300-feet-long object could be an alien "mothership" visiting the solar system from lightyears away.
More on interstellar objects: Alpha Centauri Sending Stream of Objects Into Our Solar System, Scientists Propose
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