An international team of scientists from the Search for?Extraterrestrial Intelligence（地球外的智慧生物，即外星人）?(SETI) is investigating mysterious?signal spikes（信號波）emitting from（發射于...）?a 6.3-billion-year-old star in?the constellation Hercule（武仙星座）—95 light years away from Earth. The?implications（暗含的意思）?are extraordinary（獨特的，不同尋常的）?and point to the possibility of a civilization far more advanced than our own.
The unusual signal was originally detected on May 15, 2015, by the Russian Academy of Science-operated RATAN-600 radio telescope?(電波望遠鏡) in Zelenchukskaya, Russia, but was?kept secret from（保密，不讓...知道）?the?international community（國際社會）.Interstellar space（星際空間）?reporter Paul Gilster broke the story after the researchers quietly circulated(發表) a paper announcing the detection of “a strong signal in the direction of HD164595.”
The mysterious star’s designation（代號） is HD164595, and it’s considered to be（被認為是...) sun-like in nature with a nearly identical metallic composition(同樣的金屬成分組成） to our own star. So far, a single Neptune-like（類似于海王星的） (but warmer) planet has been discovered in its orbit（軌道）—HD 164595 b. But as Gilster explained, “There could, of course, be other planets still undetected in this system.”
Decorated（裝飾的，充滿榮譽的） Italian SETI researcher and mathematician Claudio Maccone along with Russia’s Nikolai Bursov of the Special Astrophysical Observatory are the principal （主要的）scientists working on the apparent discovery. They claim that “permanent monitoring（永久的監視） of this target is needed.”
“The signal?conceivably（令人信服地）fits?the profile?for（與...相符）?an intentional transmission from an extraterrestrial source,” said Alan Boyle, author of The Case for Pluto who reported the story for Geekwire. “In any case, the?blip（尖峰信號）is interesting enough to?merit discussion（值得討論）?by those who specialize in(專門研究) the search for extraterrestrial intelligence.”
The signal’s strength indicates that if it in fact came from a-isotropic beacon（全向信標）, the power source would have to be built by a Kardashev Type II civilization. (The Kardashev scale is used to?determine（決定，這里理解為測定）?the progress of a civilization’s technological development by measuring how much energy was used to?transmit（傳遞）?an interstellar（星際的） message.)An ‘Isotropic’ ?beacon means a communication source emitting a signal with equal power in all directions while promoting signal strength throughout travel（這里解釋上文的一個詞，“全向信標”是指用同樣的能量向所有方向發射信號，同時在信號傳遞過程中加強其能量的信號源）.
In his?acclaimed（得到稱贊的）?work “Transmission of Information by Extraterrestrial Civilizations,” Soviet astronomer Nikolai Kardashev explained that a Type II civilization would be able to?harness the energy of（利用...的能量）?their entire host star. The most common hypothetical（假設的）?example of this would be a Dyson Sphere—which is a massive artificial structure that could completely?encapsulate（像膠囊一樣封裝）a star and transfer the energy to a nearby planet.
Basically, if the signal was?beamed out into the galaxy（發射到銀河系中）?without aim or direction, that would require an enormous amount of power to actually be detected. But what if the signal was beamed specifically at our?solar system（太陽系）? Well, that would require less energy and could?indicate the presence of（預示...的存在）?a Kardashev Type I civilization—meaning that it could be a highly technological, contemporary society（現代社會） ?that harnesses the solar energy emitted by its local star, much like our planet does with?solar panels（太陽能板）. This particular civilization’s social structure?is theorized to（在理論上被認為）?be completely globalized and interconnected.
“The signal is?provocative enough（足夠有刺激性，足夠令人興奮）?that the RATAN-600 researchers are calling for permanent monitoring of this target,” said Gilster. And that’s exactly what is?transpiring（被人所知）. As of last night, the SETI institute is?diverting（轉移）?its Allen Telescope Array in northern California to investigate while their?counterparts（職位相對的人）?at METI International (Messaging Extraterrestrial Intelligence) will use Panama’s Boquete?Optical Observatory（光學天文臺）.
The detection of the mysterious signal and the ensuing?investigations（隨后的調查）will be discussed at the IAA SETI?Permanent Committee（永久委員會）?during the 67th International Astronautical Congress in Guadalajara, Mexico, on September 27—the same day and location where Elon Musk will reveal his plans to?colonize（殖民化）?Mars. The Observer will be following up on both these stories from the Congress.
