Scientists receive first potential signal from exoplanet 51 light-years away: Study

In another extensive search for possible alien life, a team of scientists at Cornell University in the US for the first time has collected a potential radio signal from a planet beyond our solar system. This first possible radio signal from the aliens is believed to be emanating from an exoplanet system about 51-light years away. Using the Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR), a radioactive telescope in the Netherlands, the scientists have uncovered emissions from the Tau Bootes start-system hosting a so-called hot Jupiter, which is a gaseous giant planet that is very close to its own sun. 

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Scientists collect 1st possible radio signal

The scientists have observed other potential exoplanetary radio emission candidates in the constellation, Cancer and Upsilon Andromedae systems. However, the study published in journal Astronomy & Astrophysics found that only the Tau Bootes exoplanet systems exhibited a significant radio signature, a unique potential window on the planet's magnetic field. 

Cornell postdoctoral researcher Jake D Turner said, "We present one of the first hints of detecting on an exoplanet in the radio realm. The signal is from the Tau Bootes system, which contains a binary star system and an exoplanet. We make the case for emission by the planet itself."

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The study published in Astronomy & Astrophysics further revealed that if confirmed through follow-up observations, this radio detection opens up a new window on exoplanets and provides a novel way to examine alien worlds that are tens of light-years away. Observing an exoplanet's magnetic field helps astronomers decipher a planet's interior and atmospheric properties, as well as the physics of star-planet interactions, said Turner. 

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Stating that Earth's magnetic fields protect it from solar wind dangers and keep the planet habitable, Cornell researcher's said, "The magnetic field of Earth-like exoplanets may contribute to their possible habitability by shielding their own atmospheres from solar wind and cosmic rays, and protecting the planet from atmospheric loss."

Two years ago, Turner along with his colleagues had examined the radio emission signature of Jupiter and scaled those emissions to mimic the possible signatures from a distant Jupiter like exoplanet. Those results later became the template for searching radio emission from exoplanets which are 40-100 light-years away. 

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(With PTI inputs)