Most mysterious objects in the Solar System – including the Bermuda Triangle of space

THE universe is full of mysterious objects and our own Solar System is home to a bizarre selection that continue to baffle scientists.

From the Bermuda Triangle of space to a suspected ‘alien probe’ – here’s five weird space objects you may not have known existed.

Space Bermuda Triangle

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There’s a place in Earth’s magnetic field called the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA) and some astronauts have reported strange things occurring there.

Some astronauts have experienced an intense light flash when the International Space Station has passed through the area.

The flashes are thought to be due to radiation belts in the area that may trigger a reaction in the retinas of astronauts.

The Hubble Space Telescope is unable to collect data in this area due to the radiation.

The mystery surrounding the SAA has earned in the nickname of ‘the Bermuda Triangle of space’.

Oumuamua

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Oumuamua, the first interstellar object to be spotted in our Solar System, has left us with more questions than answers.

Scientists are proposing a 22 year mission to the reddish cigar shaped object, which some people labelled an ‘alien probe’ when it was first discovered.

Oumuamua was first spotted in 2017 and left researchers wondering how such an odd interstellar object entered our inner Solar System.

It moves too fast to be an asteroid and has no debris trail like normal comets.

Theories of what it could be range from a piece of an exoplanet to an alien spaceship.

The object is still in our Solar System but it’s now out of range of all our telescopes.

Planet Nine

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Planet Nine is a theoretical a theoretical ninth planet that may be lurking in the farthest reaches of our Solar System.

Also known as Planet X, the hypothetical world has never been observed and the jury’s still out on whether it actually exists.

Astronomers at the California Institute of Technology have suggested Planet Nine could explain the wobbly orbits of distant objects.

Planet Nine is said to have a mass about 10 times that of Earth and orbit 20 times farther from the Sun than Neptune.

It may take between 10,000 and 20,000 Earth years to make one full orbit around the Sun.

It’s suspected location is so far away that it’s making confirming a ninth planet almost impossible with our current technology.

Red Rectangle Nebula

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A nebula is a cloud of gas and dust seemingly floating in space.

There’s lots of them in space but some are more peculiar than others.

The Red Rectangle Nebula is about 2,300 light-years from Earth.

Scientist’s aren’t sure why it is this shape but it could be due to the two stars in the middle sending out shockwaves and creating dust rings.

An explanation for the reddish color also hasn’t been agreed upon.

Elst–Pizarro

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This flying space object is often referred to as a comet, but also displays the characteristics of asteroids – causing a lot of debate amongst astronomers.

It orbits within the asteroid belt but has a dust like tail like a comet.

It is the only known celestial object to show both of these characteristics, so space scientists were hoping to settle the argument once and for all by launching the Castalia spacecraft for a closer look in 2028.

Sadly, the mission failed to gain enough financial support.

Pink space bubbles

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These space bubbles aren’t technically in out Solar System but they are said to impact on it.

The Fermi Bubbles are two huge space structures that emerge above and below the centre of the galaxy.

Research has suggested that the bubbles were produced by the Milky Way’s supermassive black hole.

The bubbles bulge out of the Milky Way in an hour glass shape and are essentially matter that is escaping from a black hole.

They were spotted in 2015 by Nasa’s Fermi Gamma-Ray Telescope.

They are said to be made solely of gamma rays and span a length of around 50,000 light-years.

In other news, a huge asteroid is making its way towards Earth and Nasa has labelled it as “potentially hazardous”.

Nasa has upgraded its asteroid hazard software with some key changes that should help it better detect potentially dangerous space rocks.

And, the US space agency is planning for a ‘golden asteroid’ probing mission to launch this summer.

This post first appeared on Thesun.co.uk