SANTIAGO – The world of astronomy is in an uproar today as the Trilateral Astronomy Consortium (TAC) announced that a persistent, narrow-band radio signal from the direction of Proxima Centauri is definitively artificial in origin.
The signal, designated “PC-1,” was first detected six months ago by the Atacama Large Millimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile. It consists of a complex, repeating sequence of pulses that stand out starkly from the background noise of space. For months, scientists have worked to eliminate all possible natural or human-made sources, from pulsars to previously unknown satellite interference.
“We have exhausted every other possibility,” said Dr. Lena Petrova, the lead scientist for TAC, in a live-streamed press conference. “The signal’s structure, its complexity, and its persistent nature can only be explained as a product of intelligence. We are not alone.”
The signal is not a broad, simple message but a highly compressed data stream that current human technology cannot yet decrypt. “It’s like finding an encyclopedia written in a language we can’t read,” Dr. Petrova explained. “We know it’s a message, but we don’t know what it says. The implications are staggering.”
The announcement has ignited a firestorm of excitement and apprehension. A dedicated global effort is now underway to decode the message from PC-1. As humanity looks to the stars, we are no longer just wondering if someone is out there; we now know they are, and they are trying to talk to us.