Astronomers are one step closer to learning whether there is life beyond Earth, following the discovery of an exoplanet that’s able to emit a “coherent” radio signal.
A magnetic field on a planet is the first sign it’s capable of being habitable as it prevents radiation.
On Earth, our magnetic field extends from the molten iron in the planet’s core out into space and protects life from cosmic radiation and charged particles released from the Sun.
Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune also have magnetic fields, however, they’re all much stronger than Earth’s.
Now, researchers believe they’ve uncovered an alien planet that could have its own magnetic field, indicating it could be supporting extraterrestrial beings.
In a paper published to Nature Astronomy journal, astrophysicists found rocky planet YZ Ceti was deflecting repeated radio signals from the star it orbits around.
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