Mysterious object seen in space may be alien spacecraft, Harvard astronomers say

A mysterious object spotted floating through our solar system last year might be an alien spacecraft that was investigating Earth, according to Harvard astronomers.

The astronomers suggested the theory in a recent research paper.

Researchers based their theory on the speed that the object traveled, which was around 196,000 mph, which they say indicates it may have an "artificial origin."

"Oumuamua may be a fully operational probe sent intentionally to Earth vicinity by an alien civilization," they wrote in the paper, which has been submitted to the Astrophysical Journal Letters.

The object, called Oumuamua, was first found by telescope in Hawaii in 2017.

Oumuamua is the first object seen in our solar system that is known to have originated elsewhere.