Weird radio waves from the heart of the Milky Way - EarthSky

This week (October 12, 2021), astronomers said they’ve detected new and unusual radio wave signals, unlike any found before.

The radio waves are coming from the direction of the center of our Milky Way galaxy.

Astronomers discovered the variable signals using the ASKAP radio telescope in Australia.

The behavior of the radio emission doesn’t fit the pattern of any known source of radio signals.

The source of the signals has been dubbed ASKAP J173608.2-321635, but astronomers don’t know what the source actually is.

We have been surveying the sky with ASKAP to find unusual new objects with a project known as Variables and Slow Transients (VAST), throughout 2020 and 2021.

Looking towards the center of the galaxy, we found ASKAP J173608.2-321635, named after its coordinates.

The astronomers detected six signals over a period of nine months in 2020.

However, there do seem to be some similarities with other mysterious sources near the galactic center called Galactic Center Radio Transients (GCRTs).

The information we do have has some parallels with another emerging class of mysterious objects known as Galactic Center Radio Transients, including one dubbed the ‘cosmic burper’.

Bottom line: An international team of astronomers has detected weird radio waves coming from the heart of the Milky Way

Source (preprint): Discovery of ASKAP J173608.2-321635 as a Highly-Polarized Transient Point Source with the Australian SKA Pathfinder