Australian scientists say they have discovered an unknown rotating object in the Milky Way, which they claim has never been seen before. The object, first discovered by a university student, has been observed emitting a large burst of radio energy for a full minute every 18 minutes. Objects emitting energy in the universe have been frequently documented, but researchers say something that lights up for a minute is highly unusual.
The team is working to understand more. The object was first discovered by Curtin University student Tyrone O'Doherty in an outback region of Western Australia known as the Murchison Widefield Array, using a telescope and a new technique he had developed. "The strange object was appearing and disappearing over a period of several hours as we observed it," O'Doherty was quoted as saying in a media release.
"This was completely unexpected. It was kind of scary for an astronomer because there's nothing known in the sky that does that."
But an object that lit up for a full minute was "really weird," the scientist said.
ICRAR added that after searching the data the team was able to prove that the object is about 4000 light years from Earth, is extremely bright and has an extremely strong magnetic field.
Theories about what the object could be include a neutron star or a "white dwarf" - a term used for the remnants of a collapsed star. However, much of the discovery remains a mystery.
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