Astronomers Detect Radio Waves from an Exoplanet for the First Time
- Researchers from the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian and the University of Oregon reported last week the first direct detection of auroral radio emission from Beta Pictoris b, a gas giant 64 light-years from Earth.
- The radio bursts originate from Electron Cyclotron Maser Instability , an auroral process similar to those on Earth and Jupiter, solving the long-standing challenge of distinguishing exoplanet signals from host star emissions.
- Using distant quasars as reference points to map the sky, astronomers isolated the signal and calculated a magnetic field strength of at least 1,250 gauss—thousands of times stronger than Earth's 0.5 gauss.
- Astrophysicist Suzanne Aigrain emphasized the signals stem from natural phenomena, stating "this is definitely not aliens," while the discovery marks the first direct measurement of an exoplanet's magnetic field.
- The findings, submitted September 15 to arXiv, await formal peer review, though researchers plan to examine 7 other known giant exoplanets across 5 nearby systems using the same detection method.
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143 Articles
Astronomers detected a radio signal coming from the exoplanet Beta Pictoris B
Scientists Detect Radio Signals Originating From Exoplanet Beta Pictoris b in Potential Milestone Discovery | 🌎 LatestLY
Astronomers from Harvard and the University of Oregon have detected radio emissions originating directly from exoplanet Beta Pictoris b, located 63 light-years away. Recorded by South Africa's MeerKAT telescope, the natural signals match auroral emissions caused by the gas giant's intense magnetic field, marking the first time such waves have been pinpointed to an exoplanet. 🌎 Scientists Detect Radio Signals Originating From Exoplanet Beta Pict…
The star Beta Pictoris b, photographed by the European Observatory of the South, houses the gas giant discovered in 2008 European Southern Observatory/AP Photo/picture alliance Since the early 1990s, we know that there are planets orbiting stars outside the Solar System – the so-called exoplanets. From there to here, radio telescopes searched the sky for emissions from these distant worlds, without being able to distinguish the voice of a planet…
The signal comes from Beta Pictoris b, a gas giant discovered in 2008.
Astronomers have reported the first convincing direct detection of radio emissions localized to a planet outside the solar system. The signal comes from the giant exoplanet Beta Pictoris b, located about 63 light-years from Earth, and is most likely generated by powerful auroras in its magnetic field. The discovery has nothing to do with the search for artificial signals from an extraterrestrial civilization. The radio waves are of natural origi…
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