There is a mysterious source of repeating radio signals in our galaxy. It was discovered by Australian astrophysicists, but so far they have not been able to understand what exactly they are dealing with.
What is known
The signal lasts for approximately 5 minutes and reaches us every 22 minutes. This has been going on for at least 33 years. The source is located in the Milky Way galaxy at a distance of approximately 15,000 light-years from Earth.
The object was designated GPM J1839-10. Astrophysicists from Australia found it after GLEAM-X J162759.5-523504.3 went missing in 2018. It had a radio signal period of 18 minutes.
GPM J1839-10 does not fit into the current understanding of neutron stars and magnetars (a neutron star with a strong magnetic field). This was stated by Natasha Hurley-Walker, head of the group of scientists.
The problem is that the detected object is rotating too slowly to be a source of radio waves. Low speed does not allow creating sufficient magnetic field strength.
Now scientists are at a crossroads. It is possible that GPM J1839-10 is an unknown type of star. The second option for researchers is to change their understanding of how magnetars emit radio bursts.
Source: Science Alert
