Comments on: Little Star Twinkles, Then Vanishes

By: Ignoramus

Ignoramus — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 12:58:05 +0000

"pent-up magnetic energy" give me a break!
I hate SWAG's presented as facts

By: Nancy Atkinson

Nancy Atkinson — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 23:20:35 +0000

It's 15,000 light years away

By: Tyler Durden

Tyler Durden — Sun, 05 Oct 2008 02:10:36 +0000

The article states that the magnetar is in our galaxy, but how far away? That isn't specified.

By: Jon Hanford

Jon Hanford — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 21:14:38 +0000

It seems that this may be the first-ever sighting of a magnetar in the optical band of the EM spectrum. The cause of the optical-IR flaring still remains a mystery, but it is noted that few theoretical models exist that might explain the visible-light outbursts. Also, no x-ray flaring was detected during the optical outbursts, contrary to previously observed x-ray variability of suspected magnetars in outburst.

By: Frank Glover

Frank Glover — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 20:52:54 +0000

Don't get carried away, folks. The precision with which pulsars send radio pulses made them initially seem as if *they* could be artifacts of intelligence, too.

Now we know it's an entirely natural phenomenon (and the very broad-spectrum of the pulses suggested against ETs as well), though they did turn out to be useful as indicators on the Pioneer 10/11 and Voyager 1/2 space probes as the images indicating the distance and current pulse rate of several pulsars that anyone who may eventually find the probes could use to determine where they came from, and how long ago (because pulsars also very gradually slow down).

By: hiro

hiro — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 20:00:40 +0000

It's gravitational collapse.

By: yoogih

yoogih — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 19:34:45 +0000

maybe those pulses of light are carying with them the "intergalactic broadband signal" in which we should try to tune in and read the information, instead of just simply admiring the light show…

By: Vitor Martins

Vitor Martins — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 16:15:22 +0000

Can't quite understand why should we (others) dismiss other (different) ideas or explanations for these events… A former teacher of mine found out that she could make paper transistors… when her husband (another teacher of mine) told her that she was stupid in just thinking about it. Open you minds dudes…

By: Dark Gnat

Dark Gnat — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 14:45:39 +0000

Is it possible for a magnetar to not shine? Could a magnetic field be so strong that it contains light?

By: TioJody

TioJody — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 13:16:43 +0000

Kam, you can't be serious, so long waiting? we just started to search for something out of this world. Did I forget something?

Also, it seems that's not a kind of inteligence behind it trying for communication, sorry guys but stupid irony is not funny.

By: Rey

Rey — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 11:15:04 +0000

It's a form of distraction …and while our probes are watching it happen, something else more important (that we humans shouldn't know about) occurs somewhere else because they know we are watching the outer space.

By: kam

kam — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 09:08:15 +0000

how about decoding and… replying?? we are waiting and speculating for a Contact for sooo long!

By: RetardedFishFrog

RetardedFishFrog — Fri, 03 Oct 2008 02:59:58 +0000

Perhaps that would be a way for an advanced civilization to communicate across the galaxy: shoot a series of asteroids into a magnetar to create pulses like morse code. They might even be able to control the direction like the focussed beam of a GRB.

By: BigJon

BigJon — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 23:46:11 +0000

When aliens make contact but we think it's something else, Good One!

By: Niki

Niki — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 21:43:36 +0000

….it seems like a way of comunication…

By: YOGIH

YOGIH — Thu, 02 Oct 2008 21:23:57 +0000

Someone is signalling to us, finally!