If this thing named Oumuamua isn't an alien spacecraft, it might be proof that weird physics or physical laws do exist beyond the confines of our Solar System.
What is certain now is scientists can't completely declare Oumuamua isn't an alien craft or artifact on account of this thing's odd behavior and unnatural dimensions that violate the laws of physics as we know it. What is also certain is the cigar-shaped object didn't originate in our Solar System and is the first known interstellar object to transit our system.
Oumuamua is shaped like a cigar. It's some 400 feet long and 40 feet wide. The biggest unanswered question for scientists is the object's thickness. Scientists agree there is no naturally occurring object as big as Oumuamua that appears so thin at the same time. This physical fact increases the likelihood of Oumuamua was created by another life form.
Because of the speed, the object is moving, scientists believe it may be a light-sail, which is a spacecraft thin enough to be pushed by light radiation emitted by the Sun. A light-sail is analogous to a plastic bag blown by the wind, said Matija Cuk, a research scientist at the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) Institute.
If Oumuamua isn't a comet or an asteroid, the chances of it being a light sail increase. Cuk believes it's possible the composition of space objects is different outside our Solar System. Maybe in other solar systems, comets could be made differently, said Cuk.
Her statement suggests the object might be naturally occurring, despite the fact that nothing like it has ever been seen anywhere near Earth before.
But the argument for Oumuamua being a spacecraft can't entirely be discounted. Unlike comets, Oumuamua doesn't have a cometary tail or a coma. Neither does it eject gas in a process called outgassing as a comet would.
But the biggest unanswered question is the object's thickness. As far as the scientific community is aware, there is no naturally occurring object as big as Oumuamua that appears so thin at the same time. This fact increases the likelihood Oumuamua was created by an intelligent alien civilization.
Biologist Michael Wall said he personally thinks the odds are much better Oumuamua is something natural, "but I don't want to dismiss the possibility that it could be from an alien civilization. But we have to have an open mind."
Still, other scientists believe there are many objects similar to Oumuamua in the depths of space. This time fortuitously had the good luck to enter our Solar System. This implies a number of these objects are drifting through the cosmos, "as ubiquitous as fire hydrants," according to Seth Shostak, a SETI research fellow.
