Astronomers have spotted an unprecedented interplanetary traveler: an asteroid-like object that came from far beyond our own solar system. “Its orbit shape means it is not gravitationally bound to our solar system,” Meech said. ‘Oumuamua did not have a tail of material outgassing from its body, the way a comet does, so the object may be an interstellar asteroid. Asteroids are the building blocks of our solar system that never quite made it into a planet — which means their contents have not been changed for billions of years. “It’s our first opportunity to look at a piece of material from another solar system up close,” Meech said.

Source: Los Angeles Times November 21, 2017 01:18 UTC