Mysterious signal sent from unknown source in deep space
A brief burst of radio sent from an unknown source across the universe has been picked up by the state- of-the-art CHIME telescope in Canada.
The signal, known as a Fast Radio Burst (FRB), lasted only a matter of milliseconds. Researchers claim the signal is the first radio emission received from across the universe with a frequency below 700 MHz – the lowest frequency FRB ever recorded.
As a result, scientists believe that whatever produced the signal, which has been branded 'FRB 180725A', is likely to be extremely powerful.
FRBs are extremely uncommon, with the abrupt radio emissions first discovered in 2007 and only two dozen examples recorded since.
Experts are still investigating what causes FRBs, with possible explanations including exploding black holes and advanced extra-terrestrial civilisations.
The radio emission was first detected by the Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping Experiment (CHIME) telescope, which has been in operation for less than a year.
The FRB was detected by CHIME's expansive, four 100-meter-long
U- shaped cylinders on July 25 2018. CHIME is designed to be able to record signals sent when the universe was between 6 billion and 11 billion years old.
Christopher Conselice, a professor of astrophysics at the University of Nottingham, told MailOnline this discovery could help to pave the way for a greater understanding of what causes FRBs. 'We don't know their origin, they could be caused by a number of things,' he said. 'The fact the lower frequency FRB has been detected provides hope that we can understand more about where they come from and what causes them.
'They could be caused by exploding stars, supernova, exotic stars like pulsars, magnetars, neutron stars or massive black holes at the centre of distant galaxies. It could even be some other physical mechanism that we don't yet understand.'
Patrick Boyle, of McGill University, first reported the detection of the low-frequency FRB with a post on the astronomical publication Astronomer's Telegram. The post reads: 'During its ongoing commissioning, CHIME/FRM detected FRB 180725A on 2018 July 25 at 17:59:43.115 UTC (18:59:43.15 BST/13:59:43.15 ET). The event is clearly detected at frequencies as low as 580 MHz and represents the first detection of an FRB at radio frequencies below 700 MHz.'
Professor Conselice told that FBRs likely happen regularly, and probably reach Earth thousands of times a day. Until now however, human tools have only been able to detect the highest energy emissions. He said that CHIME's highly- sensitive tools made the discovery possible, and the short bursts of radio waves will become more commonly spotted as technology improves.
According to researchers at CHIME, whatever produced the signal in the depths of space is likely to be extremely powerful. Whatever the source, it has produced the signal a number of times, scientists say. Research into FRBs is still in its infancy, with the first signals detected less than a decade ago.
Since then, a mere two dozen FRBs have ever been detected from Earth, meaning there is little prior research for scientists build on.
'Fast radio bursts are exceedingly bright given their short duration and origin at great distances, and we haven't identified a possible natural source with any confidence,' said Avi Loeb, of the HarvardSmithsonian Center for Astrophysics research institute. 'An artificial origin is worth contemplating and checking.'
The mystery around these signals stems from the fact that scientists cannot yet pinpoint what is capable of producing such a short and sharp radio wave burst.