WOW! Celebrates a 30 Year-Old Mystery
In the year 1977, a radio signal code with the identification marks of “6EQUJ5” was recognized by astronomer Jerry Ehman, in a radio data printout from the Big Ear Radio at the Ohio State University—scanning 50 channels for some sign of ET communication. Discovered thirty-years ago on August 15th it, this same communication will be tried again but with more advanced receivers, filter banks, and computers. When the code was first discovered, SETI attempted to investigate the source for close to two months, repeating that same attempt a few years ago, and now.
Called the “WOW signal”, it is considered to be the best evidence for extraterrestrial intelligence found to this day, maintaining its open question what the source is. Since its appearance, there has been specific strategies developed for dealing with WOW and similar type anomalies. Signals with decimal counting systems or precise frequencies like 14.2400000MHz refer to earth’s engineers. On the other hand, astronomers may pick up a signal from a specific point, and will not go away even if the telescope is turned to aim somewhere else. It is then where an assumption is made that terrestrial interference is affecting it.
The Allen Telescope Array will look again for the signal after thirty years of silence, on the same radio dial spot and the same section where the signal was detected. Offering a lot more sensitivity and a wider spectral coverage than other telescopes, Ehman is excited for the renewed search. When the initial signal was found, there was no possibility of radio interference on Earth, as any signal that would be coming from outer space would follow the signal’s “increasing and decreasing over 37 seconds” as compared to Earth interference. Another reason for it not being of Earth’s origin was that it was intermittent, not continuous, which meant the signal had been turned off between the two scans.
This entry was posted on Thursday, August 16th, 2007 at 12:44 pm and is filed under Space Agency News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
