On this night in science
A visitor from another star
October 19, 2017
On this night in 2017, a telescope on a mountain in Hawaii spotted a small, oddly long object speeding away from the sun. Astronomers worked out that it had come from outside our solar system, the first visitor like that anyone had ever seen.
Why it mattered
It showed that pieces of other star systems really do drift through ours. It was named ʻOumuamua, a Hawaiian name for a messenger from far away, arriving first.
Wonder together
How far do you think something would have to travel to get here from another star?