Day2:Not a Drill:SETI Is Investigating a Possible Extraterrestrial Signal From Deep Space

An international team of scientists from the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence（地球外的智慧生物，即外星人） (SETI) is investigating mysterious signal spikes（信号波）emitting from（发射于...） a 6.3-billion-year-old star in the constellation Hercule（武仙星座）—95 light years away from Earth. The implications（暗含的意思） are extraordinary（独特的，不同寻常的） and point to the possibility of a civilization far more advanced than our own.

The unusual signal was originally detected on May 15, 2015, by the Russian Academy of Science-operated RATAN-600 radio telescope (电波望远镜) in Zelenchukskaya, Russia, but was kept secret from（保密，不让...知道） the international community（国际社会）.Interstellar space（星际空间） reporter Paul Gilster broke the story after the researchers quietly circulated(发表) a paper announcing the detection of “a strong signal in the direction of HD164595.”

The mysterious star’s designation（代号） is HD164595, and it’s considered to be（被认为是...) sun-like in nature with a nearly identical metallic composition(同样的金属成分组成） to our own star. So far, a single Neptune-like（类似于海王星的） (but warmer) planet has been discovered in its orbit（轨道）—HD 164595 b. But as Gilster explained, “There could, of course, be other planets still undetected in this system.”

Decorated（装饰的，充满荣誉的） Italian SETI researcher and mathematician Claudio Maccone along with Russia’s Nikolai Bursov of the Special Astrophysical Observatory are the principal （主要的）scientists working on the apparent discovery. They claim that “permanent monitoring（永久的监视） of this target is needed.”

“The signal conceivably（令人信服地）fits the profile for（与...相符） an intentional transmission from an extraterrestrial source,” said Alan Boyle, author of The Case for Pluto who reported the story for Geekwire. “In any case, the blip（尖峰信号）is interesting enough to merit discussion（值得讨论） by those who specialize in(专门研究) the search for extraterrestrial intelligence.”

The signal’s strength indicates that if it in fact came from a-isotropic beacon（全向信标）, the power source would have to be built by a Kardashev Type II civilization. (The Kardashev scale is used to determine（决定，这里理解为测定） the progress of a civilization’s technological development by measuring how much energy was used to transmit（传递） an interstellar（星际的） message.)An ‘Isotropic’  beacon means a communication source emitting a signal with equal power in all directions while promoting signal strength throughout travel（这里解释上文的一个词，“全向信标”是指用同样的能量向所有方向发射信号，同时在信号传递过程中加强其能量的信号源）.

In his acclaimed（得到称赞的） work “Transmission of Information by Extraterrestrial Civilizations,” Soviet astronomer Nikolai Kardashev explained that a Type II civilization would be able to harness the energy of（利用...的能量） their entire host star. The most common hypothetical（假设的） example of this would be a Dyson Sphere—which is a massive artificial structure that could completely encapsulate（像胶囊一样封装）a star and transfer the energy to a nearby planet.

Basically, if the signal was beamed out into the galaxy（发射到银河系中） without aim or direction, that would require an enormous amount of power to actually be detected. But what if the signal was beamed specifically at our solar system（太阳系）? Well, that would require less energy and could indicate the presence of（预示...的存在） a Kardashev Type I civilization—meaning that it could be a highly technological, contemporary society（现代社会）  that harnesses the solar energy emitted by its local star, much like our planet does with solar panels（太阳能板）. This particular civilization’s social structure is theorized to（在理论上被认为） be completely globalized and interconnected.

“The signal is provocative enough（足够有刺激性，足够令人兴奋） that the RATAN-600 researchers are calling for permanent monitoring of this target,” said Gilster. And that’s exactly what is transpiring（被人所知）. As of last night, the SETI institute is diverting（转移） its Allen Telescope Array in northern California to investigate while their counterparts（职位相对的人） at METI International (Messaging Extraterrestrial Intelligence) will use Panama’s Boquete Optical Observatory（光学天文台）.

The detection of the mysterious signal and the ensuing investigations（随后的调查）will be discussed at the IAA SETI Permanent Committee（永久委员会） during the 67th International Astronautical Congress in Guadalajara, Mexico, on September 27—the same day and location where Elon Musk will reveal his plans to colonize（殖民化） Mars. The Observer will be following up on both these stories from the Congress.