Massive Object Zipping Through Space at 1 Million Miles per Hour — and NASA Doesn’t Know What It Is

The colossal object — about 27,306 times the size of Earth — is found by citizen scientists.

NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI via AP
A galaxy cluster captured by the James Webb Space Telescope. An Austrian amateur astronomer has spotted a mysterious U.S. military satellite. NASA/ESA/CSA/STScI via AP

An unusual celestial object, moving at an astonishing speed of one million miles per hour, has been discovered and may be on the verge of leaving our galaxy, NASA reports.

Identified as CWISE J1249, the colossal object — about 27,306 times the size of Earth — was found by citizen scientists analyzing data from NASA’s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer telescope, known as WISE for short. Despite its discovery, experts have yet to determine the exact nature of the new object.

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