TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A NASA satellite that has been "lifeless" for nearly six decades suddenly emitted a strong radio signal in June 2024. Researchers say the signal originates from Relay 2, a communication satellite launched in 1964 and ceased functioning in 1967.
In a preprint study uploaded to the arXiv online repository of scientific articles on June 13, 2025, astronomers explained the mysterious radio wave burst when scanning the sky using the Australian Square Kilometer Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) radio telescope in Western Australia.
"This was an incredibly powerful radio pulse that vastly outshone everything else in the sky for a very short amount of time," said Clancy James, the lead author of the study and an associate professor at the Institute of Radio Astronomy, Curtin University, cited from Live Science report on June 25.
The detected signal only lasted for 30 nanoseconds and did not match any internal systems of the Relay 2 satellite. This rules out the possibility that the signal was an intentional transmission. Researchers suspect two possible causes for the appearance of the signal: micrometeorite impact or electrostatic discharge (ESD).
The study explained that A micrometeorite impact could produce a plasma cloud, which would enhance the conductivity of the space environment or create an electric field on the satellite's surface. "Micrometeoroid impacts can also produce direct radio-frequency emission," wrote the researchers.
However, according to the team, the more likely cause is an ESD event, a sudden flow of electricity between two different surfaces or materials on a satellite with different electric charges. As an early-generation space vehicle, Relay 2 is likely made of materials capable of withstanding larger charges and producing stronger ESD events.
"It has long been known that ESD causes radio frequency pulses," as stated in the researchers' conclusion.
The ASKAP system, which usually detects radio bursts from distant galaxies, found that this signal originates from within the Milky Way galaxy, even very close to Earth. The telescope couldn't accurately pinpoint its signal. James thought they had found a new pulsar or other mysterious object.
After investigation, the only plausible source was the Relay 2 satellite. However, the researchers stated that it is difficult to confirm the source of the signal, whether from a micrometeorite or ESD, due to their similar characteristics.
Karen Aplin, a space science and technology professor at the University of Bristol who was not involved in the research, stated that the signal produced by both events would appear very similar. Nevertheless, she suggested that this study could mark the beginning of a new approach to observing electric discharges in space.
"In a world where there is a lot of space debris and there are more small, low-cost satellites with limited protection from electrostatic discharges, this radio detection may ultimately offer a new technique to evaluate electrostatic discharges in space," said Aplin.
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