Pentagon confirms ‘interstellar object’ hit Earth in 2014. What was it?

The United States Space Command (USSC) has confirmed that an “interstellar object” blazed into Earth greater than 5 years in the past.

Driving the information: The USSC introduced in a memo on April 6, 2022, {that a} meteor that got here to Earth in 2014 was from one other star system, in line with Popular Mechanics.

• The fireball — which flew over Papua New Guinea in 2014 — was the primary recognized interstellar meteor from exterior our photo voltaic system to hit Earth.
• The rock reportedly broke up throughout its descent onto Earth, which led to mess touchdown within the Pacific Ocean.

Why this issues: “Before USSC confirmed this meteor was a distant stranger, all previous rocky bodies that fell to Earth were thought to have originated in our own Solar System,” in line with Popular Mechanics.

What they’re saying: The findings had been “sufficiently accurate to confirm an interstellar trajectory,” stated Lieutenant normal John E. Shaw, deputy commander of the USSC, in line with the New York Post.

• “I get a kick out of just thinking about the fact that we have interstellar material that was delivered to Earth, and we know where it is,” he informed Vice.
• “One thing that I’m going to be checking — and I’m already talking to people about — is whether it is possible to search the ocean floor off the coast of Papua New Guinea and see if we can get any fragments.”