Researchers in Antarctica have detected mysterious radio waves emerging from beneath the ice
Researchers in Antarctica have detected mysterious radio waves emerging from beneath the ice, according to findings published in Physical Review Letters. The signals were discovered during a study using the Antarctic Impulsive Transient Antenna (ANITA), which employs high-altitude balloons to monitor cosmic activity.
Stephanie Wissel, associate professor at Penn State, explained that the team was initially searching for neutrinos. “The radio waves that we detected were at really steep angles, like 30 degrees below the surface of the ice,” she said. Such waves should have been absorbed by rock, raising questions about their origin.
Neutrinos, emitted by high-energy cosmic sources, are usually difficult to detect. “We could be detecting a neutrino coming from the edge of the observable universe,” Wissel noted.
However, the signals did not align with other experiments, suggesting they might not be neutrinos. Some theories propose dark matter involvement, but Wissel admitted, “It remains a mystery.”