In October of 2017, astronomists discovered the first interstellar object to enter our solar system. Nicknamed ‘Oumuamua, the object was predicted to have entered our solar system in around 1837, but was only discovered last year because it was too far from the sun to be detected.

When it was first discovered, astronomists labelled it a comet, but astronomists dismissed that classification after ‘Oumuamua shot past the sun at over 190,000 miles per hour. So then, it was labelled an asteroid, but then it began to accelerate, which is something that a comet would most likely do.

So what is ‘Oumuamua anyway? Is it a comet or an asteroid? Researchers at Harvard have suggested a third option: ‘Oumuamua was something constructed by aliens.

“We know a quarter of all the stars in the galaxy have planets in the habitable zone of their host star… so to me it’s not impossible that there may be life elsewhere,” says Avi Loeb, chair of Harvard’s Astronomy Department in The Harvard Gazette.

‘Oumuamua could just be the beginning of interstellar objects visiting our solar systems. And with what little knowledge we have about the universe, there could very well be alien life out there, just waiting for the opportune time to pay us a visit. (Source: NASA, astrology.com, The Harvard Gazette, CNN)