Astronomers Investigating Curious Interstellar Rock for Signs of Extraterrestrial Technology

An elite group of astronomers announced Monday they will be utilizing the Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia to scan a newly discovered oblong interstellar object for radio signals, The Atlantic reports. The object, dubbed ‘Oumuamua by scientists, first crossed the University of Hawaii’s radar in October and has has attracted significant astronomical interest due to its unusual shape for space debris. Russian billionaire Yuri Milner, the founder of Breakthrough Listen, a $100 million research initiative to find evidence of life beyond Earth, is leading the project. ‘Oumuamua is barreling by Jupiter’s orbit next year before heading toward Pluto.