Eerie bursts of energy chase through space. They are called “Fast Radio Bursts” (German: Schnell Radiollitze), last only a few milliseconds and are extremely intense. Science has no idea who sends it out.
Some astrophysicists like Harvard professor Avi Loeb (58) conjecture, the radio flashes could be traces of “advanced alien technology”. It is possible, for example, that spaceships that are so far away from their home planet are supplied with energy.
Now there are new insights that provide another piece of the puzzle to solve the puzzle: one registered for the first time research group using the Canadian radio telescope CHIME regular radio flashes. Its origin is around 500 million light years from Earth in the arm of a spiral galaxy that resembles the Milky Way. Many new stars are emerging in the region.
The amazing thing: The source (code name: FRB 180916.J0158 + 65) sparks rhythmically. A new cycle begins every 16.35 days. In a time window of four days, different numbers of radio flashes are sent to earth, then there is rest for a little more than twelve days.
Nobody can explain why this is so far. However, there are several ideas:
► Perhaps the source of the radio flashes circles a black hole, the researchers write. Radio flashes could only penetrate outside at certain positions in the orbit.
► A binary system is also conceivable, which could consist, for example, of a rapidly rotating neutron star (pulsar) and another massive star. In this scenario, star winds would periodically block the radio flashes emitted by the pulsar, writes a second research group,
► A third explanatory approach lies in the source itself: According to this, the signals are not swallowed by an obstacle at regular intervals, but are sent directly into space every 16 days.
Which raises the alien question again: Can it be that an extraterrestrial intelligence turns the radio flashes on and off?
Most scientists suspect a natural cause for the phenomenon. But as cosmologist Loeb writes: “Science is not a matter of belief, but a question of evidence. Deciding ahead of time what is likely will limit the options. It’s worth expressing ideas and having the data straightened out later. ”
As long as there is no identified natural source for radio flashes, one should at least be able to think about an artificial origin.
– ,
