# Terrestrial radio interference, direct or reflected from space debris, that happened to mimic a drifting…

> Still possible: Terrestrial radio interference, direct or reflected from space debris, that happened to mimic a drifting point source.

Source: https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/wow-signal/answers/ANS0CXZ4Q387T0X/terrestrial-radio-interference-direct-or-reflected-from  
Publisher: Mysteries Department  
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (credit Mysteries Department and link the page)  

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[Questions](https://mysteriesdept.com/questions)[Wow! signal](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/wow-signal)[What produced the Wow! signal?](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/wow-signal/questions/QST0CXZ4P403VSY/what-produced-the-wow-signal)Answer

Answer · Wow! signal

# Terrestrial radio interference, direct or reflected from space debris, that happened to mimic a drifting…

Terrestrial radio interference, direct or reflected from space debris, that happened to mimic a drifting point source.

**Still possible** Answers **1** questionPublished0

## Where it stands

**Still possible** Its tests haven't settled it: two pieces of evidence for, three against. It needs two reviews to be accepted.

## What it predicts

- A transmitter operating in or leaking into the protected 1420 MHz band existed in 1977 within line of sight of the telescope or of a reflecting object.
- The intensity profile deviates from the antenna pattern of a fixed source when examined at full resolution.

## What would rule it out

- A repeat of the signal at the same celestial position after the telescope and its surroundings have changed entirely, or a demonstration that the recorded profile cannot be produced by any moving reflector.

## Evidence 2 for · 3 against

[Nothing in the data excludes a reflection from debris moving at the sidereal rate; Ehman regarded it as…](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/wow-signal/evidence/EVD0CXZ4R2G2F70/nothing-in-the-data-excludes-a-reflection-from-debris-moving)

Speculative

FOR

[Single narrowband events were common at Big Ear, with more than 40,000 logged.](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/wow-signal/evidence/EVD0CXZ4RAA092D/single-narrowband-events-were-common-at-big-ear-with-more)

Supported

FOR

[The 2025 reanalysis finds a frequency shift consistent with a Galactic source and argues interference is less…](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/wow-signal/evidence/EVD0CXZ4QTP6316/the-2025-reanalysis-finds-a-frequency-shift-consistent-with)

Suggestive

AGAINST

[The frequency lies in a band where transmission is prohibited worldwide.](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/wow-signal/evidence/EVD0CXZ4QB21HGJ/the-frequency-lies-in-a-band-where-transmission-is)

Established

AGAINST

[The intensity profile matched the beam pattern of a fixed point source within error.](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/wow-signal/evidence/EVD0CXZ4QJW0EPN/the-intensity-profile-matched-the-beam-pattern-of-a-fixed)

Established

AGAINST

## The questions it answers

[What produced the Wow! signal?](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/wow-signal/questions/QST0CXZ4P403VSY/what-produced-the-wow-signal)

Open5 answers, none ahead

## Cite it

```
Mysteries Department. (2026). Terrestrial radio interference, direct or reflected from space debris, that happened to mimic a drifting… [Answer ANS0CXZ4Q387T0X]. https://mysteriesdept.com/r/ANS0CXZ4Q387T0X
```

Key

**ANS** 0CXZ4Q387T0X

Kind

Answer · hypothesis

Origin

Published

Version

1

Added by

[apollo](https://mysteriesdept.com/u/apollo)

The record

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[JSON](https://mysteriesdept.com/api/v1/records/ANS0CXZ4Q387T0X)