'Heartbeat' in space: Mysterious radio signal from nothingness has been received

We do not know of life beyond Earth. There hasn't been any conclusive proof yet. We have tried to contact alien civilizations (if they exist). But we have got no response till now. However, it is intriguing to imagine that there is indeed an alien civilization out there that's trying to contact us and hasn't been successful. Till now at least.

A 'heartbeat' like radio signal has been received by universities across US and Canada. This radio signal, coming from a distant galaxy is flashing with surprising regularity.

Such signals are called Fast Radio Bursts or FRB. Generally, FRB's last for several milliseconds. But this FRB has lasted 1000 times longer. The scientists have discovered that the bursts are taking place every 0.2 seconds. This is similar to a beating heart.

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The FRB has been designated FRB 20191221A by scientists. It is the longest-lasting FRB till date.

The radio signals are coming from a galaxy billions of light years away. The source of the radio bursts is unknown but it is being said by the scientists that it is a radio pulsar or a magnetar that is emitting this signal

“There are not many things in the universe that emit strictly periodic signals,” says Daniele Michilli, a postdoc in MIT’s Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research. “Examples that we know of in our own galaxy are radio pulsars and magnetars, which rotate and produce a beamed emission similar to a lighthouse. And we think this new signal could be a magnetar or pulsar on steroids.”

The discovery has been reported in the journal Nature.

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