Scientists say an unknown source has been sending radio waves toward Earth since at least 1988.
Researchers do not know which object sent the radio waves to Earth. The nature of waves is such that it does not fit any model that tries to explain it.
For 35 years, the source has been sending out regular 20-minute bursts of energy that vary significantly in brightness, the researchers say.
The emissions look like bursts from pulsars or fast radio bursts lasting from milliseconds to a few seconds. But the newly discovered source is sending out pulsating radio signals over a 21-minute period – something previously thought impossible by the expected explanations.
Pulsars are neutron stars that spin rapidly around them, emitting radio bursts as they do so.
When one passes through Earth, the emissions can be picked up very briefly and brightly, like being in the path of the light of a spinning lighthouse.
Scientists believe this process can only work if the pulsar’s magnetic field is strong and spinning fast enough, otherwise there won’t be enough energy to see the pulsar from Earth.
This has led to the development of the ‘pulsar death line’, which suggests that the sources must spin fast and strong enough to be detected.
But the newly discovered object, named GPMJ1839-10, is far beyond this death line.
If this is a pulsar, then it appears to be working in ways scientists thought impossible.
It could also be a highly magnetized white dwarf or magnetar, an extra type of neutron star with incredibly strong magnetic fields.
But the researchers believe they don’t tend to send such emissions.
By examining ancient records, scientists found that the signals had been detected on Earth since at least 1988, but went undetected by those who collected these data.
After the source was identified, the researchers checked the radio archives and found that the source had been repeated for at least 35 years.
Victoria M Kaspi, a physics professor at McGill University who was not involved in the study, said more discoveries could be made this way in the future.
“Only time will tell what else is hidden in these data and what observations on many astronomical time scales will reveal,” he wrote.
This may include some explanation of how unusual the newly discovered resource is.
By examining whether there are other similar objects in the data, researchers can understand the mechanisms behind the newly discovered emissions.
The findings are reported in a new paper titled ‘A long-period radio transient that has been active for three decades’ published in the journal Nature.
2023-07-20 19:23:10
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