An interstellar object exploded over Earth in 2014, declassified government data reveal

A recent memo from the U.S. Space Command states that a fireball that flew through the skies over New Zealand in the summer of 2014) was actually a fast- moving object from another star system.

The object, measuring just 1.5 feet across, slammed into the Earth's atmosphere on January 8, 2014, after traveling through space for more than 130,000 mph.

The study argued that the object had originated far beyond our solar system, possibly from the deep interior. The paper was never peer-reviewed or published in a scientific journal because some of the data needed to verify their calculations was classified by the U.S. government.

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Scientists from the USSC have confirmed the findings. The deputy commander of the USSC wrote in a memo dated March 1 that the analysis of the fireball was "sufficiently accurate to confirm an interstellar trajectory."

The memo said that the confirmation retroactively made the 2014 meteor the first ever detected in our solar system. The cigar-shaped object that is moving too fast to have originated in our solar system was detected before the discovery of Oumuamua. Oumuamua was detected far from Earth and is already speeding out of the solar system according to NASA.

6/ “I had the pleasure of signing a memo with @ussfspoc’s Chief Scientist, Dr. Mozer, to confirm that a previously-detected interstellar object was indeed an interstellar object, a confirmation that assisted the broader astronomical community.” pic.twitter.com/PGlIOnCSrWApril 7, 2022

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The lead author of the paper, a theoretical astrophysicist at Harvard University, told Vice that he plans to get the original study published so that the scientific community can pick up where he and his colleagues left off. It is possible that pieces of the meteorite landed in the water and on the bottom of the ocean.

Siraj said he is consulting with experts about the possibility of mounting an expedition to recover the debris.

The possibility of getting the first piece of interstellar material is exciting enough to check this thoroughly and talk to all the world experts on ocean expeditions to recover meteorites, Siraj told Vice.

Vice.com has more about the meteor.

It was originally published on Live Science.