Josef SzylarASKAP telescope discovered a mysterious radio source ASKAP J1424 with a ~36-minute period. The signal is 100% polarized and extremely stable. It may originate from a white dwarf binary where magnetic interactions produce radio pulses — but its true nature remains unknown. Found during the EMU survey.
🔗 https://phys.org/news/2026-03-astronomers-period-radio-transient-unknown.html
📅 March 17, 2026
Astronomers discover long-period radio transient of unknown origin
Using the Australian SKA Pathfinder (ASKAP), astronomers have discovered a new long-period radio transient source, which received the designation ASKAP J142431.2–612611 (ASKAP J1424 for short). The newfound transient has a period of approximately 36 minutes and its nature is unknown. The finding was reported in a paper published March 9 on the arXiv preprint server.