--- title: "Astronomers: There’s Still a Chance ‘Oumuamua Is Alien Tech" description: "In a new study, two astronomers argue that 'Oumuamua can't be a giant lump of molecular hydrogen. It's probably too old and wouldn't survive as an iceberg." date: "2020-08-24" modified: "2020-08-24" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/oumuamua-could-be-alien-tech" categories: - "Science & Energy" tags: - "`oumuamua" - "Hydrogen" - "interstellar asteroid" - "the digest" --- # Astronomers: There’s Still a Chance ‘Oumuamua Is Alien Tech ![In a new study, two astronomers argue that 'Oumuamua can't be a giant lump of molecular hydrogen. It's probably too old and wouldn't survive as an iceberg.]() *\Image: NASA/Victor Tangermann\* ## 'Oumuamua In October 2017, astronomers were puzzled by the arrival of a strangely shaped object about 400 meters in length, which appeared to have entered our solar system at a highly unusual trajectory. Experts concluded that ['Oumuamua](), as it was named later, was an interstellar visitor — kicking off years of speculation about [whether]() or [not]() it's a piece of extraterrestrial technology, visiting from another star system. ## The Hydrogen Hypothesis Researchers pushing the alien probe hypothesis pointed out that the object appeared to be accelerating with no apparent explanation. But others argued that the acceleration was caused by solar radiation. Another suggested that hydrogen was emanating from it, [making it a giant, hydrogen-fuelled iceberg](). Now, in a [new study]() published last week in the *Astrophysical Journal Letters*, researchers Avi Loeb — Harvard University astrophysicist and [strong supporter]() of the alien hypothesis — and Thiem Hoang from the Korea Astronomy and Space Science Institute, argue that it can't be a massive lump of hydrogen after all. In other words, as [*Live Science* points out](), there's *still* a chance it's alien tech. ## Melting Snowman Loeb and Hoang are responding to a [June paper]() that suggested that 'Oumuamua was a comet made up of molecular hydrogen. This hydrogen could be propelling the space rock along, a process that's invisible from Earth. But there are two big problems to this idea according to Loeb and Hoang: starlight would warm up small chunks of solid hydrogen just enough to stop them from gluing together like a snowman — how comets are usually formed. They also argue that traveling all the way here from a distant "giant molecular cloud" over hundreds of millions of years would surely make it fall apart, like a snowman in the spring. **READ MORE:** [Interstellar visitor 'Oumuamua could still be alien technology, new study hints]() \[*Live Science*\] **More on 'Oumuamua:** *[Interstellar Visitor May Be One of Rarest Objects In Universe]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()