Astronomers at the SETI Institute have just reported the detection of a “strong signal” in the direction of HD164595, a star that is 95 light-years away from us.
The signal was first observed by the RATAN-600, a radio telescope located in Zelenchukskaya, Russia. As of right now, no one knows exactly where the signal originated from, however there is at least one large planet that orbits HD164595 and it’s around the same size as Neptune. There are already several theories on what the signal might be including a “We were here,” message, or maybe even an S.O.S call for help. Could there be a civilization trying to send us a message? Paul Gilster of SETI theorizes that IF the signal did come deliberately from an alien civilization, it would most likely require advanced technology that is capable of converting energy from nearby stars into communication and power.
Image Credit: nat-geo.ru
Nick Suntzeff, an astronomer from Texas A&M University, weighs in by saying. “It wouldn’t be surprising if we were just listening to ourselves.”
With this new signal and the commotion behind Tabby’s Star, even the discovery of Gravitational waves just goes to show that this has been a very interesting year for astronomers. We will have to wait eagerly to see what the SETI committee meeting will say about this discovery during their 67th International Astronautical Congress meeting being held on September 27 of this year.
Source: SETI.org
from Nerd Reactor
0 comments: