October 2, 2025

This Week in Amateur Radio

North America's Premiere Amateur Radio News Magazine

NASA

Long-Dead NASA Satellite Suddenly Emits Powerful Radio Pulse

Scientists from Curtin University suggest the signal might have been caused by an electrostatic discharge (ESD)—a sudden release of built-up charge on the satellite’s surface.

In a twist worthy of science fiction, scientists have detected a strange radio pulse from what appears to be a long-dead NASA satellite.

On June 13, 2024, researchers at the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) observed a signal lasting less than 30 nanoseconds.

The emission did not come from deep space, but from Earth’s orbit—specifically, from the location of NASA’s Relay 2 satellite, which has been silent since the 1960s.

Relay 2, launched in 1964, followed its predecessor Relay 1, which was famous for transmitting the first live television signal from the U.S. to Europe and Japan.

Read more – StratNews Global: http://bit.ly/4kVDh5D