Scientists have detected an object billions of light-years from Earth that is emitting bursts of energy following a pattern that resembles a heartbeat.
Researchers led by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology recently discovered a new signal known as a fast radio burst, which typically last for only milliseconds, that lasts for about three seconds. The group detected a repeating pattern of radio wave bursts every 0.2 seconds during these three-second intervals. The signal, known as FRB 20191221A, is the longest-lasting FRB on record.
Astronomers are unsure what is emitting the signal, but say that it is likely a neutron star, either a radio pulsar or magnetar.
"There are not many things in the universe that emit strictly periodic signals," Daniele Michilli of MIT's Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, told Eureka Alert. "Examples that we know of in our own galaxy are radio pulsars and magnetars, which rotate and produce a beamed emission similar to a lighthouse. And we think this new signal could be a magnetar or pulsar on steroids."
Michilli said that the signal was first detected in December 2019 by the Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory's Canadian Hydrogen Intensity Mapping Experiment, an interferometric radio telescope.
He noted that the signal "was unusual," saying that "Not only was it very long, lasting about three seconds, but there were periodic peaks that were remarkably precise, emitting every fraction of a second — boom, boom, boom — like a heartbeat. This is the first time the signal itself is periodic."
Michilli said that "this detection raises the question of what could cause this extreme signal that we've never seen before, and how can we use this signal to study the universe. Future telescopes promise to discover thousands of FRBs a month, and at that point we may find many more of these periodic signals."
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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