WORLD'S MOST PROMISING SETI SIGNAL2-WOW! Signal "BIG EAR"

**********THE WOW! SIGNAL**********
The world's most promising and tantalizing candidate signal from an extraterrestrial intelligence to date, the WOW! signal, was gathered by this telescope. Dr. Robert Dixon makes an on-site presentation about "Big Ear."

When communicating with an extraterrestrial being, it is important to first notify the Federal Communication Commission, FCC. Dixon discusses communication with other worlds using humor, but serious thinking. (Please excuse the background noise. The video was recorded in the telescope control room with many electronic devices running.)

As the researchers had done thousands of times, they glanced over the radio telescope's computer printouts, not expecting to find anything. But what Dr. Jerry Ehman saw on Aug. 15, 1977 would be recorded all over the world and discussed to this day. On that day's printout was a signal so strong that it catapulted the recorder off the chart. Ehman scribbled "Wow!" on the printout, and this tag is known around the world.

Beginning in 1965, Ohio State University's radio telescope, Big Ear, was used for a premier survey of the radio sky. It found over 20,000 celestial radio sources. Designed by John Kraus, it was about the size of three football fields and consists of a huge metal ground plane with two fence-like reflectors (one fixed and one tiltable). It surveys the sky by remaining stationary. Earth's rotation sweeps its beam (the area of sky it sees) in a narrow circular path through the sky once every day. The beam can be moved slightly up or down by tilting the reflector. The OSU Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence (SETI) program became the longest continuously running electromagnetic search to date. Researchers search in the hydrogen line frequency (1420 mHz), but assume a transmitting civilization would offset their frequency (Doppler shift) to remove their motions with respect to the center of the galaxy, to make a unique reference point.

The 1977 signal seemed to fit all the expected characteristics for communications of intelligent extra-terrestrial origin. It may have been a strong, highly intermittent signal from an alien civilization, which was captured by the telescope as it swept by the earth.

The Wow signal had every characteristic of an extraterrestrial signal. Its narrowband matched the telescope's antenna pattern, which indicated that it was at least at a lunar distance. (The signal from a nearer object would have a wider pattern.) But research showed that it did not come from the moon, a planet, a known star, a galaxy, a publicly known satellite, nor an earth source, which bounced off something in space. Its frequency was near the 1420 mHz hydrogen line, where radio transmissions are prohibited. Amazingly, the signal abruptly turned off as the telescope monitors recorded it. The signal's amazing strength (60 Janskys in a 10 KHz channel) was 30 standard deviations above the mean background noise. Thus, the transmitter used a huge amount on energy. If the source were a rotating lighthouse kind of beacon, the signal might never be found again.

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  News & Politics

[FiliberkeNys]

In August 1977, a real RADIO signal was detected by Dr Jerry EHMAN at the Big Ear radio telescope of Ohio State University. For more info search the internet for the Wow signal!

I'm not sure if ET can receive our TV-signals as shown in the film Contact as I believe only strong satellite uplinks and strong radar get beyond our solar system...

[IrenaScott]

The WOW signal referred to in the comments was the one detected by Dr. Jerry Ehman.

[Taioz]

No, actually, radio signals may get weaker gradually as they travel through space but they don't all together disappear. So they CAN get our TV signals and normal radio signals from the early 1900's even. And right now they're about 100 light years away. And yes, they radiate in all directions so it's like throwing an explotion of information and hoping not to hit something. Eventually someone will find them.

[jacksawild]

With all the WMDs we have developed and wars we fight imagine if the thing that kills us is the invention of radio a hundred years ago. Perhaps they're on their way and they're pissed off about our taste in music.

[MrShelbyGTman]

The atomic bomb dropped on Japan was a Hydrogen bomb. It releases energy close to the speed-of-light which would be resonating on Hydrogen atoms. The very same type of atom that the researchers at SETI monitor for alien signals. The chances of an alien species detecting a signal from Earth origin whether intentional or not is much higher than anyone has yet to expect. I believe that is when the first real surge in the UFO Phenomenon really began. Just a thought...

[Thorin Oakenshield]

hey the 1920s are the good music classics man

[TheWestbrooke]

what you heard was Rick James Super Freak in mores code.

[whtukaII]

ALL atmospheres are "perfect". They are what they are. In the case of Earth's atmosphere, WE simply evolved to be able to breathe it. Some form of alien life could evolve to breathe something entirely different, like those creepy looking things found at the bottom of the ocean that breathe what we consider to be poison. Things just adapt to their environments, the environment isn't there for us.

[Potemtole]

does this dude have a coca chew in his cheek?

[yeahdude7]

TIME magazine person of the year for sure.

[gortijx]

 Blind faith is willful ignorance.

[elijah sprague]

if there was no creator how do you explain existence, if aliens made us, who made them? I dont think people take into account how absolutely perfect our atmosphere is, that stuff doesn't happen by chance .

[monolithicbaby]

You are clearly not aware of actual scientific discoveries. If scientific data points to something it points to the fact that the building blocks of life are abundant throughout the universe and that it is not unthinkable that given the right set of circumstances life can develop elsewhere, even under for humans harsh circumstances. Time travel to the future is possible via the theory of relativity and the existence of 'god' is irrelevant.

[erdal0]

lol the scientist say that it doesn't necesarry has to be intelligent life forms.