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On August 30, amateur astronomer Gennady Borisov spotted a comet of extrasolar origin crossing our solar system.
This is the second time in as many years that an interstellar object is observed (the last one being "Oumuamua 2.0 in 2017). Through the Gemini Observatory, we now have images of this comet, making it the first object of this type to have been successfully imaged in multiple colors!
The comet, designated C / 2019 Q4 (Borisov), was captured by the Gemini multi-object spectrograph of the Gemini North telescope on the night of 9 to 10 September.
The image below shows a very pronounced tail, which indicates a degassing and confirms that the object is a comet. This is another first, where C / 2019 Q4 is the first interstellar visitor to clearly form a tail as a result of degassing.
(Gemini Observatory / NSF / AURA)
Andrew Stephens, astronomer at the Gemini Observatory, was responsible for coordinating observations. As he explains:
"This image was made possible thanks to Gemini's ability to quickly adjust observations and observe objects like this, whose window of visibility is very short, but we really had to manage for it because we got the last details at 3 o'clock in the morning to watch it by 4:45! "
The color image was produced by combining the Gemini observations, which were taken in two color bands.
These were obtained as part of a project led by Piotr Guzik and Michal Drahus at the Jagiellonian University of Krakow (Poland), which aims to capture images of "opportunity targets" astronomical.
At the present time, the C / 2019 Q4 is close to the apparent position of the sun and is therefore difficult to observe.
Over the next few months, its hyperbolic trajectory will bring it to more favorable observation conditions.
It is this same path that led astronomers to conclude that it would probably be of interstellar origin, and follow-up observations should reveal more about its composition.
Below, you can see an artist's impression that 'Oumuamua is degassing when it leaves our solar system.
(ESA / Hubble, NASA, ESO, M. Kornmesser)
Since asteroids and comets are considered as remnants of the formation of a system, knowing what this comet is made of will allow astronomers to learn a lot about its origin.
This is one of the biggest advantages of interstellar objects, in that it allows us to learn about distant star systems without having to send space robots there.
In the case of the fourth quarter of C / 2019, astronomers also have the benefit of knowing it in advance. When Oumuamua was detected for the first time, it had already made its way closest to the Sun and flew near Earth to exit the solar system.
In other words, the most opportune time to study it was largely passed by the time it was spotted.
And if there is any chance that this interstellar visitor is an extraterrestrial probe (as suggested by Oumuamua), future studies will reveal more than we expected! But do not take the lead here …
Further reading: Gemini Observatory
This article was originally published by Universe Today. Read the original article.
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