Mysterious radio signal from space caught live for first time

[Dryson]

Astronomers in Australia have picked up an “alien” radio signal from space for the first time as it occurred. The signal, or radio “burst”, was discovered on May 15, 2014, though it’s just being reported by the Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. “The burst was identified within 10 seconds of its occurrence,” said Emily Petroff, a doctoral student from Melbourne’s Swinburne University of Technology. “The importance of the discovery was recognized very quickly and we were all working very excitedly to contact other astronomers and telescopes around the world to look at the location of the burst.”

http://www.foxnews.com/science/2015...signal-from-space-caught-live-for-first-time/#

I still hold out that this is a burst of radio signals from a deep space exploratory vessel from another civilization. Why say that the signal is anything else other than what we want to believe it is? If the signal is from a black hole or natural source then that is that just as cool.....but don't turn away from this signal just yet.

 

[Silvercrest]

Why say that the signal is anything else other than what we want to believe it is?

Because that way lies madness.

I want to believe it's a signal from the future telling me which horses to bet on for the next few years. Why say it's anything else?

Or, you could use facts.

 

[Kemaiku]

Or, you could use facts.

You have read the OP's prior threads, right?

 

[Lonemagpie]

"WOW!!"

 

[Mary Ann]

If the signal doesn't translate to "Shut up, Wesley!" I'm going to be sorely disappointed.

The signal is what it is, and no amount of speculation, especially that not based on current scientific knowledge, is going to change it to what someone may want it to be. Discussion in this thread is to be based on whatever scientific knowledge is relevant to the topic, not baseless speculation.

 

[Skellington]

According to the source it's looking very much like a highly energetic solar flare or a collapsing neutron star, which is impressive enough given that in either case the light would have been travelling for billions of years when it arrived here.

There's no need to make ET the God Of The Gaps, at any rate.

 

[Silvercrest]

Or, you could use facts.

You have read the OP's prior threads, right?

To quote a wise guy:

That way lies madness.

 

[Tom Hendricks]

We should contact Eleanor Arroway straight away, get her working on this. She still has access to the Very Big Arrays, right?

 

[Lonemagpie]

If the signal doesn't translate to "Shut up, Wesley!" I'm going to be sorely disappointed.

I've always said that if ever we receive an actual alien signal, it'll be, essentially, a spam. "Greetings, I am the younger son of Betelguesian Emperor X'!tch@col, and need your help to transfer 32 gazillion galacticreds..."

 

[Timewalker]

Why say that the signal is anything else other than what we want to believe it is?

That isn't how science works.

We should contact Eleanor Arroway straight away, get her working on this. She still has access to the Very Big Arrays, right?

Very Large Array.

And even she and her colleagues waited to consult with other astronomers around the world to confirm that they were all receiving the same signal and hadn't been able to rule it out as a naturally-occurring phenomenon.

 

[CorporalCaptain]

Astronomers in Australia have picked up an “alien” radio signal from space for the first time as it occurred.

It would have been much stranger if, instead of "for the first time as it occurred," they had picked up the signal after it had already passed by once.

I suppose with the right set-up for gravitational lensing it might be possible to do that, though.

 

[Awesome Possum]

Astronomers in Australia have picked up an “alien” radio signal from space for the first time as it occurred.

It would have been much stranger if, instead of "for the first time as it occurred," they had picked up the signal after it had already passed by once.

I suppose with the right set-up for gravitational lensing it might be possible to do that, though.

If those damn Time Lords would help out, we could pick it up before it occurred.

 

[Kemaiku]

Lets not go to war with the Daleks because someone just did the galactic equivalent of accidentally'ing something to youtube.

 

[Tom Hendricks]

Watch, we'll wind up being Rickrolled.

 

[Timewalker]

^People still do that?

 

[Awesome Possum]

A Time Lord would, for a species known for time travel they are oddly behind on memes.

 

[RoJoHen]

The obvious course of action is to respond with prime numbers and see what happens.

 

[Kemaiku]

A Time Lord would, for a species known for time travel they are oddly behind on memes.

Well a meme is a linear progression of humour stemming from a single point. A TL may not understand a cascade of humour over a singular joke.

Or, maybe they see what people find funny and nip back and post the thing that starts them...

 

[Timelord79 (he/him)]

The obvious course of action is to respond with prime numbers and see what happens.

Obviously.. and a response will only take another 11 billion years.
Wanna play tic tac toe while we wait?