Today's blog is about Oumuamua. Have you ever heard about Oumuamua? No, it ain't a person, or a city, or a place, or a lake. So, what the heck is it? I will give you a hint. In the Hawaiian language it means “messenger from afar arriving first”. No, it isn't the mailman, it is a cigar-shaped asteroid about the size of a skyscraper. Here is a picture of it:
I am not sure, but I believe these are artists renditions of what it should look like. Astronomers have been keeping an eye on it because it has swung through our solar system before and it may very well do it again. Last time it didn't hit any planets, let's hope the next time, if it comes back, it will keep on missing the planets. Here is a map of its trajectory:
Space is a dangerous place and quite dynamic. We never know what it will throw at us but if there is something coming and we can detect it far enough out, maybe we could be able to deflect it enough to miss us and our neighbor planets.
OK, even though it is raining here right now, I am going to have a great day and I want you to have a great day, too.