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A spacecraft orbiting Jupiter discovers an FM radio signal from Ganymede, one of the gas giant’s moons. The discovery is the first time a signal from Ganymede has been detected.
Patrick Wiggins, a NASA Utah ambassador, warned according to KDFW that they were probably not strangers.
“It’s not ET,” Wiggins said. “It’s more of a natural feature.”
The spacecraft, named Juno, moved over a region of Jupiter, where magnetic field lines can be connected to the Ganymede moon. That was when Juno recorded the radio source.
Juno was sent out to study how Jupiter formed and evolved over time.
“Juno’s primary purpose is to reveal the story of Jupiter’s formation and evolution. Juno will observe Jupiter’s gravity and magnetic fields, atmospheric dynamics and composition and evolution, according to Juno through proven technologies on a rotating spacecraft.
It was electrons, not extra terrestrial ones, that were responsible for the radio emission of the moon.
Through a process called psychotron mass instability, electrons oscillate at a slower rate than they rotate, causing their radio waves to amplify rapidly.
Although an important discovery, the spacecraft was able to record the radio for only five seconds. Juno is swept by a blinding speed of 111147 mph. It’s fast enough to cross the entire U.S. coast to coast in just under two minutes.