Bizarre radio signals emerging from the centre of our galaxy have been discovered by Australian scientists. The astronomers have dubbed the signal ASKAP J173608.2-321635 and they as of yet have no clue as to what is causing them.
The signal was discovered by the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) one of the most sensitive telescopes in existence, which was designed to pick up radio waves from the farthest reaches of space.
Ziteng Wang of the University of Sydney states:
"We have presented the discovery and characterization of ASKAP J173608.2-321635: a highly-polarized, variable radio source located near the Galactic Center and with no clear multi-wavelength counterpart. ASKAP J173608.2-321635 may represent part of a new class of objects being discovered through radio imaging surveys."
He adds:
"We've never seen anything like it."
What is most peculiar about the radio waves is that they are intermittent, meaning they are only observed for periods of time before disappearing. The radio wave is also highly polarised, meaning that its wave is heavily twisted. It has been suggested that this twisting and the intermittent signal may be the result of interstellar dust or other obscuring objects as opposed to the object or event itself.
Solar flares have been discounted as there is no detection of X-rays. Likewise, a pulsar is unlikely because they tend to 'pulse' in a rhythmic timely fashion as opposed to the irrational activity of ASKAP J173608.2-321635. X-ray binaries, gamma-ray bursts, and supernovae are also seen as unlikely candidates for a variety of reasons.
The research paper does however suggest that little-known Galactic Center Radio Transients (GCRT) may be the culprits, stating:
"Given that ASKAP J173608.2-321635 is typically not detected and can turn off on timescales from several weeks to as quickly as a day, our sparse sampling (12 epochs over 16 months) suggests that there could be other similar sources in these fields… Increasing the survey cadence and comparing the results of this search to other regions will help us understand how truly unique ASKAP J173608.2-321635 is and whether it is related to the Galactic plane, which should ultimately help us deduce its nature."
[Based on reporting by: science alert]
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