Canadian astronomer Robert Weryk discovered ʻOumuamua (depicted), the first known interstellar object detected passing through the Solar System.

Robert J. Weryk is a Canadian physicist and astronomer. He currently works at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, where he discovered the first known interstellar object, ʻOumuamua. He has also published numerous articles on meteors and other astronomical topics.

1I/ʻOumuamua is the first confirmed interstellar object detected passing through the Solar System. Formally designated 1I/2017 U1, it was discovered by Canadian Robert Weryk using the Pan-STARRS telescope at Haleakalā Observatory, Hawaii, on 19 October 2017, approximately 40 days after it passed its closest point to the Sun on 9 September. When it was first observed, it was about 33 million km from Earth and already heading away from the Sun.

An interstellar object is an astronomical object in interstellar space that is not gravitationally bound to a star. Applicable objects include asteroids, comets, and rogue planets, but not a star or stellar remnant.