Could Solar Radiation Pressure Explain 'Oumuamua's Peculiar Acceleration?

2018/10/26 by Shmuel Bialy, Abraham Loeb · 1 voice · 120 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Acceleration #Astro and Planetary Science #Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies #Interstellar medium #Orbit (dynamics) #Radiation #Radiation pressure #Solar System #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies #Trajectory #astro-ph.EP #astro-ph.GA

paper · pdf · open access · doi:10.3847/2041-8213/aaeda8

published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters 868(1), L1 (IOP Publishing) · To be published in "The Astrophysical Journal Letters" on November 12, 2018

openalex created_date 2018/11/02 · arxiv created 2018/11/08 · openalex publication_date 2018/11/12 · arxiv updated 2018/11/28 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05

Abstract

`Oumuamua (1I/2017 U1) is the first object of interstellar origin observed in the Solar System. Recently, \citetMicheli2018 reported that `Oumuamua showed deviations from a Keplerian orbit at a high statistical significance. The observed trajectory is best explained by an excess radial acceleration Δa ∝ r^-2, where r is the distance of `Oumuamua from the Sun. Such an acceleration is naturally expected for comets, driven by the evaporating material. However, recent observational and theoretical studies imply that `Oumuamua is not an active comet. We explore the possibility that the excess acceleration results from Solar radiation pressure. The required mass-to-area ratio is (m/A)≈ 0.1 g cm^-2. For a thin sheet this requires a thickness of ≈ 0.3-0.9 mm. We find that although extremely thin, such an object would survive an interstellar travel over Galactic distances of ∼ 5 kpc, withstanding collisions with gas and dust-grains as well as stresses from rotation and tidal forces. We discuss the possible origins of such an object. Our general results apply to any light probes designed for interstellar travel.

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Discussions

• Could Solar Radiation Pressure Explain Oumuamua’s Peculiar Acceleration? [hn, 90 points, 36 comments]

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