Mystery radio signal in deep space shows activity just as scientists expected

In June, astronomers Fast Radio Burst 121102 discovered a repeat scheme of 157 days. Just on schedule, scientists have discovered activity from the mysterious radio signal.

The findings, published in The Astronomer’s Telegram, suggest “that this repeater [FRB 121102] is likely in another active phase, “the researchers wrote.

FRB 121102, observed since 2016 by the Lovell Telescope in the United Kingdom, was discovered to have a repeating pattern of 157 days. It shows activity for about 90 days and then goes silent for 67 days, according to the June study.

NEAREST EVER, MYSTERIOUS ‘FAST RADIO BURST’ OF 30,000 LIGHT YEARS OF EARTH

However, the new findings double that time frame, suggesting that FRB 121102 has an on-time frame of about 156.1 days.

The researchers, from the National Astronomy Observatory of China, discovered on August 17 “at least 12 bursts” of FRB 121102. They expect the active part of the signal to end between August 31 and September 9.

“Alternatively, if the source is continuously on after the projected shut-off time, it suggests that the putative period of the source is not real or has evolution,” the scientists wrote. “We encourage more commitment to monitoring other radio observatories.”

FRB 121102 is the second rapid radio burst known to have a recurrence pattern after FRB 180916. J0158 + 65 was found in February to have a 16-day recurrence pattern.

It is unclear exactly why FRB 180916.J0158 + 65 repeats, but researchers have suggested that it may be because it is a compact object, such as a black hole, which repeats the pattern. It is also possible that it may come from a binary star system, but more research is needed.

ANOTHER FIXED RADIO BURST IN DEEP RUM THAT IS REPEATED AND BECOMES SCIENTISTS

It is unknown how often FRBs actually occur and why some of them recur and others do not; most of their origins are also mysterious in nature.

Some researchers have speculated that they originated from an extraterrestrial civilization. But others, including the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence Institute, like SETI, have said that explanation “really makes no sense.”

MYSTERIOUS FAST RADIO BURST UNLOCKS ‘GALAXY’S TRANQUIL HALO’

They come from outer space “and regulating cooperative alien behavior as even one-way communication takes many billions of years seems unlikely – to put it mildly,” SETI wrote in a September 2019 blog post.

FRBs were first discovered in 2007 relatively new to astronomers and their origins are mysterious. According to ScienceAlert, some of them can generate as much energy as 500 million senses in a few milliseconds.

In July 2018, an FRB hitting the earth was nearly 200 megahertz lower than any other radio burst ever discovered.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP