Mysterious radio signals coming from a sun-like star have excited and baffled scientists.
SETI researchers noticed a strong spike in radio signals coming from the constellation Hercules, according to Geekwire.
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The signal fits the profile for an intentional transmission - but it could just be a case of radio interference.
Regardless, the signals are enough to merit a discussion. Centauri Dreams' Paul Gilster weighed in on the findings:
No one is claiming that this is the work of an extraterrestrial civilization, but it is certainly worth further study. Working out the strength of the signal, the researchers say that if it came from an isotropic beacon, it would be of a power possible only for a Kardashev Type II civilization.
The signal was detected more than a year ago, on May 15, 2015, by the RATAN-600 radio telescope in Russia.
It's interesting because Hercules is about 95 light-years away from Earth, and it's already known to have at least one "warm Neptune" planet.
There's been no record of another signal since the first recording more than 15 months ago.
Dough Vakoch, president of San Francisco-based METI International said his team would be monitoring Hercules. In an email to Geekwire, Vakoch said:
Standard SETI protocols call for confirmation of possible signals from a separate observatory. This helps ensure that the original signal didn’t arise from a technical glitch in the original observatory, and it helps rule out a hoax perpetuated by some enterprising graduate students targeting a SETI experiment. In addition, we need to be alert to the possibility than if we do really find a signal from an advanced civilization, they are also transmitting at other frequencies than the one where we first detected them.