An interstellar asteroid spaceship? Do not believe the hype.

Perhaps you've heard: Alien panic is sweeping the internet.

You can not go away without having a good time in the world, but you can not do it. It's exhausting.

This week, all that alien panic is swirling around a story quoting a Harvard astronomer claiming that the first interstellar asteroid or comet ever discovered named 'Oumuamua could actually have been felt by aliens from distant space. It's sensational! It's perfect for the internet! It's also something you should be totally skeptical of.

Start with the motto "It's never aliens," and work back from there. But that's easier said than done.

Here are just a few things to think about the next time you're trying to spot an alien panic (or aliens) on the internet:

Who's the source?

This is the big one. Always question where a story is coming from – with aliens and with anything else.

In the case of the interstellar asteroid, this article is based on the conjecture of one Harvard researcher, who gave NBC a quote speculating that the asteroid might be an alien ship sailing on the radiation of our sun.

The piece has been pegged to a new study that has not yet been peer-reviewed, which briefly mentions the idea that one might have felt the asteroid in the far-reaching of the space based on how it's moving.

Effectively, all of this alien panic coverage was stirred up from one quote from one researcher. So here's a good rule of thumb: Offhand comments do not new stories make.

Now, if the piece announces aliens was a lot of things, things could be different.

How is it written?

You can learn a story based on it's written. As for a good story about aliens, you want it to be more than one source, or at the very least, plenty of context.

For example, a quick search shows that scientists are more likely to be listening to the radio signals being sent by 'Oumuamua when it passed through the solar system last year. However, they did not find anything. That's the kind of context that needs to be found in this particular finding.

Do a quick Google search to figure out exactly what's being said about the story. If you find a debunk – of which there are many for 'Oumuamua – that' s a pretty good indication that it 's more likely they are not.

Also, always in the appeals to authority in journalism. If the story (and headline) is heavily involved in a high-profile institution, then the story is probably not at all.

Which publication wrote the story?

While the story is the most important tool in the history of the world, it is important to know what is going on.

Ask whether the publication has a history of a reliable science. (Look to places like The Verge, Ars Technica, big newspapers like the New York Times and Washington Post, The Atlantic, and, yes, Mashable for really good science coverage.)

It's probably best when it comes to science writing as a rule. If they are more skeptical, be skeptical as well.

What's the timing?

You can figure out a lot about an alien story if you know why it's being published when it is.

NASA is the master of inducing alien panic with obvious timing. Usually, the space agency will announce a press conference for either 1 p.m. AND one has Wednesday or 2 p.m. And one has Thursday under the auspices of some exciting announcements relating to "life in the solar system," or some other tantalizing news nugget.

While the agency will not be away from the news, it is possible to look at the story.

If the press conference is one of two major science journals – or Science gold Nature. (We know this because journalists are embarking on these journals each week.)

In all likelihood, which means the story will be compelling, but probably not definitive proof of alien life.

The truth is, if you're hoping for some kind of "we've found a little green men announcement," then the White House will almost certainly be involved. Cool incremental science stuff about microbial life out there in the universe, however, will likely come through the journals and NASA.

I do not want to be a buzzkill. It's fun to think about aliens. It's great to be sure we're alone in the universe.

But, at least for now, it's just a thought experiment. Just remember one thing: It's never alien … until it is.