Mysterious "Dead" Satellite Sends Powerful Signal to Earth After Decades
The radio pulse was blasted from a defunct satellite, Relay 2, which was a NASA experimental communications satellite launched in 1964.
It was part of the Relay programme, which consisted of two satellites, Relay 1 and Relay 2, designed to test communications in medium Earth orbit. Both satellites were funded by NASA.
The US-based space agency stopped using it in 1965, and the technical and electronic devices stopped working altogether by 1967.
Last year on June 13, scientists using the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) detected a small but powerful flash that lasted less than 30 nanoseconds.
Clancy James at Curtin University in Australia and his colleagues were shocked as the signal came from our galaxy.
"If it's nearby, we can study it through optical telescopes really easily, so we got all excited, thinking maybe we'd discovered a new pulsar or some other object," says Clancy as quoted by New Scientist.
"This was an incredibly powerful radio pulse that vastly outshone everything else in the sky for a very short amount of time," Clancy added.
Scientists studied the source and found that the signal came from within 20,000km of Earth. After comparing it with the locations of known satellites, they found that the pulse came from the Relay 2 satellite.
As the satellite has been dead for nearly six decades, scientists believe that the signal must have come from an external factor, such as an electrostatic discharge or a micrometeorite.
Either it was a spark-like flash that originated from a build-up of electricity, or it was a plasma discharge following a micrometeoroid impact.
"In a world where there is a lot of space debris and there are more small, low-cost satellites with limited protection from electrostatic discharge (ESD), this radio detection may ultimately offer a new technique to evaluate electrostatic discharges in space," Karen Aplin at the University of Bristol, UK, said as quoted.
The research, whose preprint is available on arXiv, has been accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
34 minutes ago
- Time of India
'Significant declines' in some species after deep-sea mining: research
Deep-sea mining could impact marine life stretching from the tiniest bottom dwellers to apex predators like swordfish and sharks, a major piece of industry-funded research found Thursday. The Metals Company -- a leading deep-sea mining firm -- paid Australia's government science agency to pore through data collected during test mining in the remote Pacific Ocean. Huge tracts of Pacific Ocean seabed are carpeted in polymetallic nodules, bulbous lumps of rock that are rich in metals used in battery production -- such as cobalt and nickel. The Metals Company is pushing to be the first to mine these nodules in international waters, striving to exploit a remote expanse known as the Clarion-Clipperton Zone . by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Free P2,000 GCash eGift UnionBank Credit Card Apply Now Undo Australia's government science agency released a series of technical reports on Thursday detailing how mining could be managed. Bottom-dwellers such as sea cucumbers, marine worms, starfish and crustaceans could see "significant declines in abundance immediately following mining", research found. Some of these species would partially bounce back within a year, but filter feeders and other tiny organisms that feast on seabed sediments showed "minimal recovery". "On the seafloor, our research shows that there are substantial local impacts from different mining operations," scientist Piers Dunstan said during a briefing. Deep-sea mining companies are still figuring out the best way to retrieve nodules that can lie five kilometres (three miles) or more beneath the waves. Most efforts focus on robotic harvesting machines, or crawlers, which hoover up nodules as they rove the ocean floor. The Australian scientists looked at how sharks and fish might be harmed by plumes of sediment discharged as mining waste. In some scenarios, apex predators could see toxic metals start to build up in their blood after prolonged exposure to these plumes. "Long-lived top predators, such as swordfish and large sharks, accumulated the highest simulated metal concentrations," scientists noted in one report. 'Risk of harm' Simulations showed blood metal concentrations would not exceed international health guidelines, and impacts were less pronounced if sediment was discharged at a greater depth. "This project helps ensure that if deep-sea mining were to go ahead, there is a clear approach to understand potential risks and impacts to marine life and ecosystems," Dunstan said. Canada-based The Metals Company is striving to start industrial deep-sea mining in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone within the next two years. The International Seabed Authority -- which oversees deep-sea mining in international waters -- has yet to adopt long-awaited rules governing the industry. The Metals Company has indicated it could forge ahead even without the authority's approval, pointing to an obscure US law that says American citizens can recover seabed minerals in areas beyond the nation's jurisdiction. The firm paid Australia's Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation -- or CSIRO -- around US$1 million to compile the reports. CSIRO stressed it was not for, or against, deep-sea mining -- but that its work would help to measure and monitor impacts should it go ahead. Energy transition expert Tina Soliman-Hunter said it was one of the "most comprehensive" pieces of research on deep-sea mining to date. "Without such research, there is a risk of harm from mining activities that can persist for generations," said Soliman-Hunter, from Australia's Macquarie University. Found in international waters between Mexico and Hawaii, the Clarion-Clipperton Zone is a vast abyssal plain spanning some 4 million square kilometres (1.7 million square miles).
NDTV
an hour ago
- NDTV
Massive Asteroid As Big As An Airplane To Zoom Past Earth On July 4, Says NASA
NASA has confirmed that asteroid 2025 MV89, a 120-foot-wide space rock approximately the size of a small passenger aeroplane, will safely pass by Earth on July 4. The asteroid will come as close as 1.22 million kilometres, travelling at a speed of 19,441 miles per hour. While this might sound far, it's relatively close in astronomical terms. Belonging to the Aten group of asteroids whose orbits often cross Earth's path, 2025 MV89 is being monitored closely by NASA. However, the agency has clarified that there is no threat from this flyby. For an asteroid to be classified as hazardous, it must be over 150 metres wide and come within 7.4 million kilometres. This object meets neither condition. Still, space agencies are vigilant. Even small orbital shifts could alter future paths, so tracking continues. India's space agency ISRO is also stepping up planetary defence strategies. ISRO Chairman S. Somanath recently emphasised the need to monitor larger objects like asteroid Apophis, expected to pass Earth in 2029. He also highlighted the importance of collaborating with NASA, ESA, and JAXA to develop stronger systems for asteroid detection and response. ISRO is working on missions that could land on asteroids to assess risks and study ways to protect Earth from potential impacts. While 2025 MV89 poses no danger, it acts as a reminder of the importance of constant space surveillance. Events like this reinforce the need for international collaboration in ensuring Earth remains safe from celestial threats.
Indian Express
2 hours ago
- Indian Express
After Shubhanshu Shukla, NASA's Anil Menon gears up for Expedition-75
As ISRO's Group Captain Shubhanshu Shukla continues his Axiom Mission 4 (Ax-4), NASA astronaut Anil Menon is preparing for his first mission to the International Space Station (ISS). Menon will serve as a flight engineer and Expedition 75 crew member aboard the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-29 spacecraft, scheduled to lift off in June 2026. He will be joined by Roscosmos cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina for an eight-month stint aboard the ISS adding to the growing Indian footprint in space. The trio will launch from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Once aboard the station, Menon will conduct a range of scientific investigations and technology demonstrations. Selected by NASA in 2021, Menon graduated with NASA's 23rd astronaut class in 2024. Born and raised in Minneapolis, he brings an impressive mix of skills to the table. He's an emergency medicine physician, mechanical engineer, and colonel in the U.S. Space Force. NASA Astro Class 23 The fly shape represents our class, 'the flies'. Twelve stars represent the candidates of class 23 and the UAE and US flags are both displayed. And of course the astronaut pose represents our faith in NASA's return to the moon while keeping an eye on Mars! — Anil Menon (@astro_anil) October 28, 2022 Menon also holds a bachelor's degree in neurobiology from Harvard University, a master's in mechanical engineering, and a medical degree from Stanford. He completed residencies in emergency and aerospace medicine at Stanford and the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston. It was worth the wait !!! — Anil Menon (@astro_anil) September 15, 2024 Outside of spaceflights and experiments, Menon still practices emergency medicine at Memorial Hermann's Texas Medical Center and teaches at the University of Texas residency program. Before joining NASA, he was SpaceX's first flight surgeon, supporting the historic NASA-SpaceX Demo-2 mission. He also served as crew flight surgeon for multiple ISS missions. It is the 75th long-duration mission to the ISS, which is currently scheduled to launch in June 2026. The primary purpose of the ISS is to enable long-term exploration of space and provide benefits to people on Earth. Expedition 75 will likely contribute to this by conducting various scientific experiments and research projects.
