  We report the observation of a compact binary coalescence involving a 22.2 -
24.3 $M_{\odot}$ black hole and a compact object with a mass of 2.50 - 2.67
$M_{\odot}$ (all measurements quoted at the 90$\%$ credible level). The
gravitational-wave signal, GW190814, was observed during LIGO's and Virgo's
third observing run on August 14, 2019 at 21:10:39 UTC and has a
signal-to-noise ratio of 25 in the three-detector network. The source was
localized to 18.5 deg$^2$ at a distance of $241^{+41}_{-45}$ Mpc; no
electromagnetic counterpart has been confirmed to date. The source has the most
unequal mass ratio yet measured with gravitational waves,
$0.112^{+0.008}_{-0.009}$, and its secondary component is either the lightest
black hole or the heaviest neutron star ever discovered in a double
compact-object system. The dimensionless spin of the primary black hole is
tightly constrained to $\leq 0.07$. Tests of general relativity reveal no
measurable deviations from the theory, and its prediction of higher-multipole
emission is confirmed at high confidence. We estimate a merger rate density of
1-23 Gpc$^{-3}$ yr$^{-1}$ for the new class of binary coalescence sources that
GW190814 represents. Astrophysical models predict that binaries with mass
ratios similar to this event can form through several channels, but are
unlikely to have formed in globular clusters. However, the combination of mass
ratio, component masses, and the inferred merger rate for this event challenges
all current models for the formation and mass distribution of compact-object
binaries.
