Current Affairs

 A radio signal originating from atomic hydrogen in an extremely distant galaxy was detected by the Giant Metrewave Radio Telescope (GMRT) located in Pune. This is the largest astronomical distance over which such a signal has been picked up.

The findings have been published in the scientific journal Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. Astronomers from McGill University in Canada and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in Bengaluru have used data from the telescope to detect atomic hydrogen. 

GMRT is a low-frequency radio telescope that helps investigate various radio astrophysical problems ranging from nearby solar systems to the edge of the observable universe. 

Atomic hydrogen is the basic fuel required for star formation in a galaxy. When hot ionised gas from the surrounding medium of a galaxy falls onto the universe, the gas cools and forms atomic hydrogen. This then becomes molecular hydrogen and eventually leads to the formation of stars. 

www.downtoearth.org