Three years ago, scientists recorded a mysterious repeating radio signal from outer space that couldn't easily be explained.
Now, those same scientists believe they have found a potential source for such strange celestial broadcasts. Spoiler: it's probably not aliens.
Back in 2021, during lockdown, Australian undergraduate astronomer Tyrone O'Doherty spotted an unusual burst of radio waves that repeated every 18 minutes.
But at the time, scientists had never seen a pulsar repeat as slowly as 18 minutes, and commonly accepted theories of how pulsars work suggested that shouldn't be possible.……