The first known interstellar asteroid, ‘Oumuamua, is being studied by scientists once they have learned how to catch up. According to Project Lyra, a probe will be launched in February 2028 and will take four years to travel near Earth, Venus, and Jupiter before arriving at ‘Oumuamua around 2050–2054. What information do we have on Oumuamua?

Analysis of data from the Pan-STARRS Panoramic and Rapid Response Telescope System, which is primarily used to look for near-Earth asteroids, led to the discovery of Object 1I/Oumuamua on October 19, 2017. ‘ Initially believed to be a comet, Oumuamua was subsequently identified as an asteroid.

It was traveling at an accelerated rate, which is too fast for a basic asteroid, but it did not leave a gaseous tail, which is thought to be a sign of icy comets from the system’s outermost region. Its brightness remained constant as well, which is more typical of asteroids than comets.

Gennady Borisov, an amateur astronomer, made the first interstellar comet, Comet Borisov, in August 2019 with a 65-cm telescope he built himself.

‘Oumuamua and Comet Borisov are incredibly fascinating objects to study because of their extrasolar origins, but because they are transiting the solar system and were already discovered on the departure route, it is quite challenging to catch up with them.

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The potential of an artificial origin for such objects, which may be suggested by Oumuamua’s incredibly elongated shape, has scientists particularly fascinated.

There is only one method to comprehend the object’s origin because it cannot be adequately analyzed through telescopes any longer. According to the document that was made public, Project Lyra is a mission to launch a probe from Earth that can catch up with ‘Oumuamua and learn more about its structure.

The Interstellar Probe will surpass all previous records for spacecraft range. Image source: John Hopkins APL

Project Lyra: catching up with Oumuamua

The suggestion in the document is to set up an improved mission that will launch in February 2028 and spend four years accelerating utilizing gravitational maneuvers to take advantage of the Oberth effect.

A portion of the energy from a gravitating body can be removed by the device’s engine when it is granted its maximum approach, further dispersing the equipment.

Once at Venus, once at Jupiter, and twice at Earth, gravity maneuvers—or Oberth maneuvers—should be conducted until the device picks up enough speed and approaches ‘Oumuamua in 2050–2054.

While there have been many prior attempts to determine a trajectory to ‘Oumuamua, the most of them have centered on employing the Oberth maneuver to fly around the Sun. This approach involves the spacecraft plunging into a gravity well and as it falls, it uses its thrusters to enhance its acceleration.

The drawback of solar-powered propulsion is that a complicated and heavy shield, like the one used by the American Parker Solar Probe to explore the outer solar corona, would be required to screen the probe from intense solar radiation.

Although this maneuver appears to be a fantastic idea on paper, it lacks technological preparedness because it has never been executed.

The final speed of the spacecraft’s arrival at ‘Oumuamua will be substantially lower than that of the spacecraft using the maneuver with the Sun – 18 km/s against 30 km/s – which is another benefit of the maneuver with Jupiter.

The Lyra project will have more time to investigate the extrasolar asteroid from a flyby trajectory as a result. The researchers calculated that the craft may catch up to Oumuamua by 2054 based on a launch window of 2028.

Overview of the Project Lyra, which will be sent towards Oumuamua. Credit: arxiv.org

What if we find another similar object?

Of course, there is always the possibility to wait until an object that resembles ‘Oumuamua is discovered and then plan an expedition to it.

After all, it’s possible for seven interstellar rovers to pass through our solar system on average each year. Even the possibility exists that some comets from the outer Oort cloud may have extrasolar origins.

The second interstellar object ever detected, comet 2I/Borisov 2019, mimics minor bodies already observed in the solar system, therefore it would be foolish to wait for such an event, according to the same article.

The chance of another encounter with an object like ‘Oumuamua in the future is unknown, making it a more singular object. The ‘Oumuamua expedition is a chance that should not be passed up because of the potential scientific benefit from such a trip.

Sources:

• Dickinson, D. (2022, January 18). Interstellar probe proposed to explore the Solar Neighborhood. Sky & Telescope.

• Hibberd, A., Hein, A., Eubanks, M., & Kennedy III, R. (2022, January 11). Project Lyra: A mission to 1I/’OUMUAMUA without Solar Oberth manoeuvre. arXiv.org.

• Tangermann, V. (2022, January 20). Scientists propose mission to catch up with mysterious interstellar object. Futurism.

• Williams, M. (2022, January 21). If launched by 2028, a spacecraft could catch up with Oumuamua in 26 years. Universe Today.

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