The Wow! Signal: 72 Seconds We Still Can’t Explain

In 1977, a radio telescope in Ohio detected a signal from deep space so unusual that astronomer Jerry Ehman circled the data in red ink and wrote one word beside it: WOW!

The signal lasted just 72 seconds. It was extraordinarily strong, narrowband, and appeared near the hydrogen line—a frequency scientists had suggested an intelligent civilization might use to contact us. But the signal was never detected again.

For nearly 50 years, the Wow! Signal has remained one of astronomy’s greatest mysteries. Was it an unknown natural phenomenon, interference, or possibly a transmission from another civilization?

Now, researchers have reanalyzed the original data and proposed a new explanation involving cold hydrogen clouds and an extremely rare cosmic event, potentially triggered by a magnetar.

But the hypothesis is controversial, and other scientists argue that the physics behind it has never been observed.

So what really happened during those 72 seconds in 1977?

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