A strange satellite radio signal has been detected, and it looks like a beating heart

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new A study published in the journal temper nature Presents the results of a funny discovery: a radio signal that looks like a heartbeat, detected by a group of astronomers on December 21, 2019. First.

Thanks to A Canadian radio telescope called CHIME, which picks up radio waves emitted by hydrogen far in the universe, study members have already detected unusually fast radio bursts. The fast radio blasts (or Fast Radio Burst, FRB), it typically lasts a few milliseconds before fading out completely. Here, it’s quite the opposite.

The signal, called FRB 20191221A, lasted for up to three seconds, about 1,000 times longer than typical fast radio bursts. CNN Reports. “There were periodic peaks that were remarkably accurate, emitting every millisecond — boom, boom, boom — like a heartbeat. This is the first time that the same signal has been periodic.”And the Danielle Micheli explaineda postdoctoral researcher at the Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Origin unknown

At the moment, we don’t know more about this funny sign. Even its origin remains unclear, although astronomers believe the signal came from a galaxy about a billion light-years away. Researchers believe that the FRB 20191221A signal may be due to emissions from neutron starsOr pulsars or magnetars – but they’re (much) brighter.

FRBs are still unknown, but they fascinate astronomers. Simply put, they are very powerful bursts of radiation, as radio wavelengths blast off into intergalactic space in milliseconds, Science alert explains. In this very short period of time, the eruption emits as much energy as 500 million suns. That’s just.