Is it what space agencies aren’t saying about Oumuamua that is the most telling?
They’ve know the size of the object and know the trajectory. It would be simple to get its mass to size ratio. So they know what that is...but never mentioned it
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answers:
aladdinwa say: You can't calculate Oumuamua's mass just from its size and trajectory. To calculate mass you must see how another close-by object of a known mass changes the trajectory of Oumuamua.
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Ronald 7 say: What is there to tell
It was long and slender and passed through our Solar System at a rate of knots after travelling from many light years away
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quantumclaustrophobe say: How would you get it's mass?
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tham153 say: how do you get its mass, not knowing density or having it pass close enough to anything to measure gravitational influence?
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nineteenthly say: It wouldn't be simple because they don't know the shape and there is nothing near it which could be influenced by its gravitational pull. Its composition is also unknown.
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Starrysky say: Adding to the problems pointed out by others is this one: `Oumaumau was not a passive object as it went through the solar system. It was under thrust. There were changes in its speed and direction that were additional to what was changed by the sun's gravitational attraction. As well as Jupiter's influence, there was a small factor that might have been outgassing of some frozen material. It was heated by close approach to the sun and boiled out through fractures. It was very slight, since no tail or trailing material was seen.
As you can see, this is quite a complex problem that may or may not be solved by investigators who want to know its mass and volume and density.
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Jeffrey K say: How could its mass be calculated? Its orbit is independent of its mass. Maybe you could guess its mass by guessing its density based on the rock you think it is made from. But I don't know how its mass could actually be measured or calculated.
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CarolOklaNola say: Since there is nothing orbiting Oomuamoua, and it tumbling and it was discovered AFTER closest approach to the Sun, it is very difficult to calculate the mass. I suggest you take a look at the sources of the Oumuamua Wikipedia article. Only ONE source is the Jet Propulsion Laboratory's digital database. No space agency is hiding Oumuamua's mass. It is NOT part of the Solar System.
Complain to the author of the Wikipedia article or Nature or the scientist who discovered Oumuamua and the International Astronomical Union.
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PhotonX say:
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If there were the slightest hint that ʻOumuamua were an artificial construct, as you seem to be implying, there would absolutely be a crash program to launch a probe, any sort of probe, even an empty third stage, to intersect the object before it moves too far away to be reached. So what is it that has you all conspiracy theorists all atwitter about it?
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billrussell42 say: What do you think they are hiding?
the size and trajectory tell you nothing about the mass. Look at the orbital equations.
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Choose a bloody best answer. It's not hard. say: Has it ever occurred to you that you might not be as intelligent as you think?
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