A distinguished astronomer sees evidence of extraterrestrial life – The Economist:

In the weeks after this discovery, astronomers quickly confirmed that ‘Oumuamua (which loosely means “scout” in Hawaiian) was the first interstellar object recorded as having passed through the solar system. Initially it was thought most likely to have been an asteroid or a comet; but as 2017 drew to a close, the available data continued to puzzle scientists. Their analyses indicated that ‘Oumuamua was small (around 400 metres long) and shiny (perhaps ten times shinier than any asteroid or comet seen before). It seemed to have an elongated, cigar-like shape, at least five to ten times longer than it was wide. (Later it was generally deemed to have been flatter, like a pancake, as in the impression in the picture.) Astronomers had never seen anything like it.