If we judge anything by name, it could be a star.
But there is nothing in the 8462852 KIC behavior that resembles the rest of their peers.
This star, detected by a citizen science program that helps filter the information sent by the Kepler space telescope, has the uncanny custom to lessen the intensity of its brightness at irregular intervals
Read. The superfast mysterious stars that wander through space
To get an idea of the uniqueness of this occurrence is sufficient to note that of the nearly 150,000 stars telescope watching, this is the only one that behaves in this way.
Detection absence
The temporary reduction of brightness occurs, usually, when a planet passes in front from its star during its orbital path.
It is precisely this change that allows us to deduce the existence of a planet.
The frequency of these falls are REGULAR which corresponds to the duration of its orbit
See also:. What are areas of the Universe habitable?
But if the star in question, observed were completely irregular intervals, in both frequency and intensity.
In 2009, for example, two small falls were recorded, along with an asymmetrical drop a week in 2011, and a series of several falls for three months in 2013 (some 20%).
From the above so far it appears that then, the cause of this behavior can not be the presence of a planet.
And also can not be, because the intensity of the decrease is very large . even if it were a planet the size of Jupiter (the largest planet in our solar system), light KIC 8,462,852 be reduced by only 1%
So how do you explain this
Looking for a plausible explanation
Tabetha Boyajian, an astronomer at Yale University in the United States, an institution that launched the citizen science Planet Hunters in 2010, recently published a study on the possible causes.
But each of them, says the scientist, has a weakness.
“We rascábamos head … Each idea we could think of, was always something to argue against “said Boyajian.
In principle, Boyajian and his team ruled out were a flaw in the telescope or processors . Data
See also: Kepler-452b: NASA discovered the most Earth-like planet
He also dismissed it was a young star, which is still in the process of accumulating mass and therefore it is surrounded by a cloud of dust and rock that could explain the irregularity of its luster.
The study concludes that the more likely explanation may be in a group of exocometas who approached and broke the star because of gravity, leaving process huge amounts of dust and gas.
If comets move in an orbit that passes in front of the planet approximately every 700 days, fragments that are still shelling could explain the decrease irregular brightness perceived by Kepler.
The only way to test this theory with more information, but since the telescope stopped working properly in 2013, is more difficult to obtain data.
The most striking hypothesis all
Meanwhile, research continues in another sphere.
Intrigued by the finding, Boyajian shared the results of their study Jason Wright, a colleague of Pennsylvania State University and member of an organization that investigates exoplanets and habitable worlds.
Your opinion opens the door to other possibilities.
According to Wright, if none of the above reasons convincing, Why not think of the phenomenon could be caused by a number of mega structures equipped with solar panels, built by aliens?
Scientists who believe in the existence of intelligent life or at least the possibility-it outside our planet, argue that advanced alien civilizations are characterize most probably by their ability to obtain energy from its sun and not the exploitation of the resources of his own planet.
Both Boyajian as Wright warn that this hypothesis is very, very remote, that should be taken with tongs.
However, they believe it is a valid hypothesis worthy of investigation. And for that, both present a proposal to focus massive radio telescope at the strange star.
If everything is booming, the first observations to be made in January.
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