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Jun 9 2015

How the Wow! Signal Works

33 min 3 movies discussed
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In 1977, Ohio State astronomers discovered a radio transmission from space that was 30 times louder than the cosmic background noise. Since then every explanation of what it was has fallen short and the Wow! Signal remains possible evidence of alien life.

AI Summary

In this fascinating episode, Josh and Chuck dive into the mysterious "Wow! Signal" - a 72-second radio transmission detected in 1977 that remains one of the most compelling pieces of potential evidence for extraterrestrial intelligence. They explore how this incredibly powerful signal was discovered at Ohio State University, broadcast on the exact frequency that scientists theorized aliens might use, and why even the most hardened skeptics haven't been able to fully debunk it. The hosts examine both the tantalizing evidence that suggests this could be our first contact with alien civilization and the various attempts to explain it away through more earthbound causes.


Movies Discussed

Gravity
Gravity
2013 1h 31m
★ 7.2
"You've seen gravity — Josh referenced the movie to illustrate that there's a lot of space junk floating around in space." — Josh
Love Is Blind
Love Is Blind
2020
★ 6.2
"We're going to be talking to Nancy Rodriguez from Netflix's Love is Blind Season 3 — This was mentioned in an advertisement for another podcast during the commercial breaks."
Love, American Style
Love, American Style
1969
★ 6.1
"he's watching love American style on TV and eating his TV dinner — Josh used this as a humorous example of what Jerry Amon might have been doing while analyzing radio telescope data in 1977." — Josh

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