A signal picked up by three observatories in 2023 has finally been decoded. The message left scientific teams with more questions than answers.
In May 2023, observatories captured a signal containing an alien-like message, and the raw data was uploaded to the internet for all to comb through.
Ken Chaffin and his daughter Keli obtained the data and worked on decoding the message. While Keli said she initially had no plans to join the effort, she quickly became mesmerized once she realized its scope.
The duo then worked for nearly a year, reportedly spending thousands of hours experimenting with various ideas and math simulations to figure it out. They uncovered a visualization of what appears to be five amino acids, but it is unclear what they represent. The visual is only displayed for about one-tenth of a second, but outlets have presented it as a video on loop, which may have caused some confusion.
"The original image that looks like a star map has always given me the appearance of biological life-forms," Keli Chaffin said in an email to CNN. "[A] lot of members have seen a mouse, a starfish, or an elephant."
Despite the message coming from outer space and being described by outlets as alien-like, it certainly originated from mankind.
The signal came from the SETI Institute in California, which, in 2023, decided to simulate the scenario of receiving a coded message from aliens or an unknown source in space. The signal was realistically sent from Mars to Earth by the ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter, a satellite that measures methane and atmospheric gases around Mars.
The message traveled through space for a reported 16 minutes before being captured by the Allen Telescope Array in Northern California, the Robert C. Byrd Green Bank Telescope, and the Medicina Radio Astronomical Station near Bologna, Italy.
The raw data had to be extracted from a purposeful entanglement of other data from the Mars spacecraft, and it took about 10 days to download and convert it into a visual format.
'I had no idea what the message would show or say.'
"I knew I had the skills to decode the message," Ken Chaffin said, stating that he has decades of work with the cellular automata computation model.
Cellular automata is a grid of cells in a checkerboard pattern that can show any number of patterns depending on which cells are "on" or "off." Depending on the grid's rules, it can depict static patterns, repeating patterns, or patterns that appear to be moving across the grid.
The Chaffins ran what they saw on the "star map" as cellular automata simulations and eventually generated the image of the amino acids.
"I had no idea what the message would show or say," Ken Chaffin added. "I suspected that it might have something to do with life."
He said it became clear once he saw the image that it was amino acids, recognizing them from chemistry class.
Chaffin has theorized that the message could represent hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen being transported through space to later be assembled into a life; a very interesting message were it actually from nonhumans.
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Legendary American astronaut Buzz Aldrin announced his endorsement in the 2024 presidential election — and leftists on social media are not taking it well.
"I believe we are best served by voting for @realDonaldTrump," Aldrin wrote in a lengthy statement on X on Wednesday morning. "I wholeheartedly endorse him for President of the United States."
Edwin "Buzz" Aldrin became a household name in July 1969 when he and fellow Apollo 11 crew member Neil Armstrong became the first men to walk on the moon. So it comes as no surprise that Aldrin endorsed Trump mainly because of the former president's interest in space defense and exploration.
"Over time, I have seen our government’s approach to space wax and wane. But under the first Trump Administration, I was impressed to see how human space exploration was elevated as a policy of high importance again," Aldrin said in his statement.
To support his claim, Aldrin noted that Trump founded Space Force and reinstituted the National Space Council. Key Trump allies in the private sector such as Elon Musk have likewise made "advancements" in space exploration technology, Aldrin added.
Aldrin met Trump in the Oval Office in 2019 to mark the 50th anniversary of the moon landing. While there, he lamented the recent reduction in funding for space programs.
'I did respect you, but you don’t respect any of the women in your life.'
In addition to discussing his concerns about space, Aldrin, 94, expressed concerns about the direction America is currently heading. He then indicated that Trump has the temperament and the "sober analysis" needed to withstand the "pressure" of the job "with firmness and follow-through."
"In times of uncertainty real leaders are most needed – to guide and inspire a people, to push through the noise, recognize what really matters, and accomplish missions critical to all citizens."
Aldrin did not make any reference to a political party or to Trump's opponent, Kamala Harris. Nevertheless, leftists on X railed against the beloved nonagenarian, claiming to have lost respect for him and his judgment.
"You just lost a fan. Donald Trump is a convicted felon traitor you back [sic]," wrote one disgruntled user who lists his manifold academic bona fides in his X bio.
"Such an unforced error. You know what it means to see the bigger picture, shame," another added.
Others claimed Aldrin was doing a disservice to women by voting for Trump.
""I have lost all respect I had for you. You should talk to the women in your life more," said one.
"Wow. I did respect you, but you don’t respect any of the women in your life. And with your own words, you state that the space program is more important to you than any women, their rights, their autonomy, or their ability to make decisions about their own body. Shameful," wrote another.
Some of those comments have dozens or even hundreds of likes.
With less than a week before Election Day, Trump currently holds a narrow national lead of just .4 and a lead in six of the seven battleground states, according to the RealClearPolling average.
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Boeing's spacecraft may require a rescue from Elon Musk's SpaceX program but has yet to publicly ask for help, reports have stated.
Aerospace and defense corporation Boeing launched its Starliner spacecraft in early June 2024 with the intention of having the craft and crew travel to the International Space Station and return within two weeks. It has now been eight weeks since the vessel was launched.
At the time of the launch, NASA officials reportedly said that crew members Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams could come back to Earth as soon as June 14, just eight days after launch.
'Our prime option is to complete the mission.'
Also around that time, a report from ZeroHedge noted that it was actually the third attempt at launching the Boeing CST-100 Starliner. The first attempt was scrapped due to a leak, and then the month after another launch was pushed back a few days due to what was described as a computer glitch.
The Starliner's trip to the space station apparently involved helium leaks and failing thrusters, but officials downplayed them as minor distractions.
Mark Nappi, vice president and manager of Boeing's Commercial Crew Program, said the issues were "pretty small, really, issues to deal with," according to Ars Technica.
"We'll figure them out for the next mission. I don't see these as significant at all," Nappi added during a post-docking news conference.
After testing, NASA officials declined to state whether or not they would seek outside assistance should the Starliner's thrusters not be reliable enough to return home.
"Our prime option is to complete the mission," NASA program manager Steve Stich said. "There are a lot of good reasons to complete this mission and bring Butch and Suni home on Starliner. Starliner was designed, as a spacecraft, to have the crew in the cockpit."
However, an alleged inside source told Ars Technica that there was a greater than 50/50 chance that the Starliner crew would return to Earth on a Crew Dragon spacecraft, which is operated by SpaceX.
When asked about that possibility, NASA spokesperson Josh Finch told the outlet, "NASA is evaluating all options for the return of agency astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams from the International Space Station as safely as possible. No decisions have been made and the agency will continue to provide updates on its planning."
While it has all but been confirmed that a plan involving SpaceX is being mapped out, NASA posted in a recent blog that it is "continuing to prepare for undocking by participating in integrated simulations with space station operations teams."
"Following the completion of Starliner's return planning, which is expected to continue into next week, more information will be shared about the agency's return readiness review preparations [in the] subsequent media briefing."
At the same time, SpaceX has reportedly been testing scenarios where it would accommodate two extra crew members back to Earth on Crew Dragon, and has already identified flight suits that would fit the two Boeing astronauts.
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At the center of the Earth lies a solid metal ball that rotates independently of our spinning planet. Scientists have debated the inner core's rotation speed and direction. However, new research points to the inner core varying speed in recent years. However, researchers are not exactly sure if there are any effects from the inner core slowing down or reversing.
Danish seismologist Inge Lehmann discovered the ball-shaped inner core in 1936.
The inner core is buried approximately 3,220 miles deep inside Earth. The solid metal ball is mostly comprised of iron and nickel. The inner core is estimated to reach temperatures as scalding as the surface of the sun – roughly 9,800 degrees Fahrenheit.
According to National Geographic:
The inner core’s intense pressure — the entire rest of the planet and its atmosphere — prevents the iron from melting. The pressure and density are simply too great for the iron atoms to move into a liquid state. Because of this unusual set of circumstances, some geophysicists prefer to interpret the inner core not as a solid, but as a plasma behaving as a solid.
Earth's magnetic field pulls on this ball of hot metal, forcing it to spin. At the same time, gravity and flow of the fluid outer core and mantle also interact with the movement of the inner core.
By analyzing seismographic data, scientists believe the core rotates quicker and slower during a 70-year cycle. A hypothesis proposed in 2023 claimed that the inner care had actually spun faster than Earth itself in the past, but was spinning slower in recent times. The slowdown was so significant that the inner core could even reverse the direction of its spin.
The research discovered the inner core began slowing down around 2008 and slightly reversed direction relative to the mantle by 2023. According to calculations by researchers, the rotation of the inner core will start speeding up again in the next 5 to 10 years.
New research published in the journal Nature on June 12 is said to confirm the core had slowed down significantly. However, scientists are not exactly certain as to what the effects the slowdown or the backward movement could have on the Earth.
There is one theory that a slower-spinning core could fractionally alter the length of a day.
The movement of metal-rich fluid in the outer core generates electrical currents that power our planet's magnetic field, which protects our planet from deadly solar radiation. Scientists believe that a slowing or reversing inner core could potentially affect Earth's magnetic field.
The new study's coauthor Dr. John Vidale – Dean’s Professor of Earth Sciences at the University of Southern California’s Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences – said the new research "nails it."
Vidale told CNN, “I think we’ve ended the debate on whether the inner core moves, and what’s been its pattern for the last couple of decades.”
Dr. Lauren Waszek – a senior lecturer of physical sciences at James Cook University in Australia – told the outlet, “Differential rotation of the inner core was proposed as a phenomenon in the 1970s and ’80s, but it wasn’t until the ‘90s that seismological evidence was published.”
Waszek noted that more data and "improved interdisciplinary tools to investigate this further" to determine if there are any effects of the slowing inner core.
Waszek did say, “In terms of that effect in a person’s lifetime? I can’t imagine it means much.”
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Viral video caught the moment that a Chinese space rocket crashed into a mountain shortly after an accidental launch on Sunday.
The Tianlong-3 ("Sky Dragon 3") rocket accidentally launched during what was supposed to be a ground test of the vessel's booster.
The two-stage Tianlong-3 is a partly reusable rocket under development by Space Pioneer – a rival of Elon Musk's Space X. The Tianlong-3 rocket is a competitor of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 spacecraft.
During the ground test, the Tianlong-3 space rocket unintentionally detached from the test bench at the launch pad due to a structural failure. The botched launch was intended to be a routine "static fire" of the rocket’s engine with the spacecraft remaining on the launch pad, according to reports.
Dramatic video shows the space rocket launch and then losing power and bending sideways seconds later. The rocket is seen on video falling from the sky in a horizontal motion. The rocket finally crashed back down to Earth and made a huge explosion in a mountain region near the city of Gongyi in central China's Henan Province, less than a mile away from the launch site.
"Due to the structural failure of the connection between the rocket body and the test platform, the first-stage rocket was separated from the launch pad,” Space Pioneer said in a statement. “After liftoff, the onboard computer was automatically shut down, and the rocket fell into the deep mountains 1.5 kilometers [0.9 miles] southwest of the test platform. The rocket body fell into the mountain and disintegrated."
Space Pioneer – a private Chinese business also known as Beijing Tianbing Technology founded in 2019 – reported that there were no injuries or casualties after an initial investigation, according to Reuters.
Space Pioneer noted that parts of the rocket were scattered within a "safe area," but did cause a fire in the area after the spacecraft exploded. The fire has since been extinguished.
Space Pioneer compares the performance of Tianlong-3 to SpaceX's Falcon 9.
The Tianlong-3 rocket stands at 230 feet high, and is capable of carrying up to 17 tons into orbit.
The Tianlong-3's maiden launch mission had been scheduled for July before Sunday’s accident.
Space Pioneer is a space company known for specializing in liquid-propellant rockets.
In April 2023, Space Pioneer successfully launched its Tianlong-2 rocket, making it China's first commercial launch operator to send a liquid carrier rocket into space and successfully enter orbit.
However, this is the second Chinese rocket failure in a week. Just days before the Toanlong-3's explosion, the Long March 2C rocket blew up into pieces shortly after launch and rained down debris on a popular region.
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'[A] Big step towards making life multiplanetary was made today,' Musk wrote on X, while facing a cascade of hostile lawfare campaigns.
America's space program is no longer a nationalist vanity project but a serious matter of strategic interest.
The latest NASA debacle demonstrates just how incompetent our governmental and corporate elites have become.
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