Talk:1I/ʻOumuamua
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New paper
edit- On the Anomalous Acceleration of 1I/2017 U1 `Oumuamua Darryl Seligman, Gregory Laughlin, Konstantin Batygin (Submitted on 12 Mar 2019)
Mentioning the several options about the shape already at the beginning
editThe first mention of the shape of ʻOumuamua, already in the second paragraph, claims that it is elongated.
" ʻOumuamua is a small object estimated to be between 100 and 1,000 metres (300 and 3,000 ft) long, with its width and thickness both estimated between 35 and 167 metres (115 and 548 ft) "
It is only much later, in the subsection Appearance, shape and composition that the possibility of it being “an extremely flat object, a pancake or oblate spheroid” is first mentioned.
And a bit later in this subsection it is mentioned that the flat shape is more likely than the elongated one.
A 2019 paper finds the best models as either a cigar-shape, 1:8 aspect ratio, or disc-shape, 1:6 aspect ratio, with the disc more likely since its rotation does not require a specific orientation to see the range of brightnesses observed.
It seems to me that the first mention of the shape should be edited to at least mention the possibility of a flat “pancake” and even present this option as the more likely shape (but not rejecting completely the *possibility* of an elongated shape. ~2025-39314-50 (talk) 13:53, 8 December 2025 (UTC)
Reference suggestion
editThere is a recent technical note exploring a collective‑behavior--a 'murmuration' interpretation of ʻOumuamua’s light curve and acceleration: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.18396150. This may be relevant for future updates to the article. ~2026-62233-2 (talk) 21:22, 28 January 2026 (UTC)