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Radio signal detected for the first time from a planet outside our solar system
The bursts point to an intense planetary magnetic field and mark the first radio emission securely traced to an exoplanet, researchers said.
- 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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Astronomers claim to have detected directly for the first time a radio emission from a planet outside the solar system. However, the signal is evidence of a colossal magnetic field, not of intelligent life.
Radio Waves From Far-Off Planet Appear to Be a First
Astronomers say they've picked up a radio signal from a planet 63 light-years away—but, alas, it's not aliens calling. The bursts appear to be coming from Beta Pictoris b, a massive gas giant about 12 times Jupiter's mass, and point to the existence of an enormous magnetic field driving...
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