Astronomers detect mysterious radio pulses from a nearby binary star system

Astronomers have detected rare radio waves from a binary star system, challenging previous ideas about their origins. These pulses, lasting from milliseconds to minutes, arrive every 125.5 minutes. Scientists now believe they come from a white dwarf and red dwarf orbiting each other. The discovery marks a major step in understanding long-period cosmic radio signals.

An international research team, led by Dr. Iris de Ruiter, made this breakthrough while analyzing data from the Low-Frequency Array (LOFAR) telescope.

The findings, published in Nature Astronomy, suggest that these pulses are linked to the stars' orbital motion, not just an isolated spinning object. This insight helps explain similar signals seen across the Milky Way.

Dr. de Ruiter, now at the University of Sydney, developed a method to detect long-duration radio pulses in past LOFAR data. While refining this technique, she found a single pulse from 2015. Further searches revealed six more signals from the same location, confirming the presence of a repeating source, now called ILT J1101 + 5521.

Follow-up observations with optical and x-ray telescopes provided crucial details about ILT J1101 + 5521. The system consists of a red dwarf and a white dwarf orbiting each other every 125 minutes. These stars lie about 1,600 light-years away in the Ursa Major constellation.

Unlike previous detections of fast radio bursts, these pulses appear tied to the interaction between the two stars. The red dwarf’s plasma interacts with the white dwarf’s intense magnetic field, producing bursts of radio waves. This phenomenon resembles magnetic interactions seen in other compact binary systems but on a smaller scale.

Astronomers plan to examine the ultraviolet emissions from this system. These studies could reveal the temperature of the white dwarf and its evolutionary history. Learning more about these objects will help scientists understand how magnetic fields influence star systems.

Dr. de Ruiter emphasized the importance of collaboration in making this discovery. “It was especially cool to add new pieces to the puzzle,” she said. “We worked with experts from all kinds of astronomical disciplines. With different techniques and observations, we got a little closer to the solution step by step.”

Until now, astronomers believed that neutron stars were the primary sources of bright cosmic radio pulses. This discovery proves otherwise. ILT J1101 + 5521 shows that binary systems with white dwarfs can also generate strong radio signals.

In recent years, researchers have found about ten similar radio-emitting systems, but many remained uncertain whether white dwarfs or neutron stars were responsible. The confirmation of ILT J1101 + 5521's nature gives scientists a new framework to study these events.

Astronomers are now digging through LOFAR data for more such signals. Co-author Dr. Kaustubh Rajwade from the University of Oxford said, “There are probably many more of these types of radio pulses hidden in the LOFAR archive, and each discovery teaches us something new.”

The discovery of ILT J1101 + 5521 suggests that other binary star systems may also emit radio pulses. The interaction between stars in close orbits could be more common than previously thought. These findings could reshape how scientists classify transient radio sources in the Milky Way.

Magnetic interactions and plasma exchange between binary stars have long been theorized as possible sources of radio waves. ILT J1101 + 5521 now provides a concrete example of this process in action. By continuing to analyze archived telescope data, astronomers hope to uncover more systems like it.

The search for cosmic radio pulses is far from over. As telescope technology improves, more discoveries will likely emerge, providing deeper insights into the universe’s most mysterious signals.

Note: Materials provided above by The Brighter Side of News. Content may be edited for style and length.

Like these kind of feel good stories? Get The Brighter Side of News' newsletter.