A strange radio signal came from an alien world.Astronomers using South Africa’s MeerKAT telescope detected repeating, highly polarized radio bursts coming directly from Beta Pictoris b, a giant planet about 63 light-years away.
It sounds like an alien transmission, but there’s no evidence of extraterrestrial intelligence.
The leading explanation is far more fascinating: enormous auroras generated by the planet’s powerful magnetic field.
The observations could provide the first direct measurement of an exoplanet’s magnetic field, which researchers estimate may be thousands of times stronger than Earth’s.
That matters because magnetic fields can help shield planetary atmospheres from radiation.
So this may be more than just a strange radio signal. It could be the beginning of a new way to detect and study the invisible magnetic fields of distant worlds.
We may have just learned how to listen for planets’ magnetic shields.
@futurism
