Scientists detect first possible radio signal from exoplanet

A team of scientists has detected the first possible radio signal from a planet beyond our solar system. The signal is reportedly emanating from an exoplanet system about 51 light-years away from the Earth.

The scientists uncovered the emission bursts using the Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR), a radio telescope in the Netherlands. The emission bursts have been detected from aTau Bootes star-system, which reportedly hosts a hot Jupiter-like gaseous giant planet that is very close to its own sun.

The international team was led by researchers from Cornell University in the United States. They observed other potential radio-emissions in the constellation systems- Cancer and Upsilon Andromedae. This was reported in a study published in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics.

Key Highlights

•The study found that only the Tau Bootes exoplanet system exhibited a significant radio signature, which is a unique potential window on the planet's magnetic field.

•One of the team members,  Cornell postdoctoral researcher Jake D. Turner said that they have presented one of the first hints of detecting an exoplanet in the radio realm.

•The signal has been uncovered from the Tau Bootes system, which contains a binary star system and an exoplanet. As per the researchers, the emission is coming from the planet itself.  The researchers will be conducting follow-up observations to confirm the same. 

•If confirmed, the detection of the radio signal opens up new pathways to examine the alien worlds that lay almost tens of light-years away. 

•Astronomers are able to decipher a planet's interior and atmospheric properties along with the physics of star-planet interactions by observing an exoplanet's magnetic field.

•Earth's magnetic field protects it from solar wind dangers thus, keeping the planet safe and habitable. So exoplanets with Earth-like magnetic field may similarly to be able to host life.

Background

The international team of scientists had examined the radio emission signature of Jupiter two years ago and scaled those emissions to mimic the possible signatures from a distant Jupiter-like exoplanet. The results had become the template for searching radio emission from exoplanets 40 to 100 light-years away.