Strange Schumann resonances were not caused by aliens

By: Nikolaj Kristensen
June 23 2023

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Context

From June 17 through June 19, 2023, the Russian Space Observation System recorded an unusual pattern of Schumann resonance, leading some social media users to spread unfounded theories as possible explanations. Schumann resonances are low-frequency electromagnetic resonances within the Earth’s atmosphere, caused by electromagnetic waves from lightning bouncing off the atmosphere and colliding with one another with just the right wavelength to create resonance.

Social media users who said they had observed the resonance data for years claimed they had never seen anything like it. One user wrote, “It's either a malfunction or there's something major going on with the Earth. I can't even speculate what it could be, switching poles, something with human consciousness? Somebody turned off the Alaskan pyramid?” Others speculated that it was caused by aliens. The real explanation, however, is less colorful. 

In Fact

The irregular measurements on June 17 through June 19 were not accurate, a spokesperson for the Space Observation System told Logically Facts. “The strange resonances observed in the previous days were caused by an accident at the supply substation and are not correct. The issues have now been resolved. We apologize for the possible misleading,” the spokesperson said. 

Ciaran Beggan, an expert in geomagnetism with the British Geological Survey, explained to Logically Facts that rather than aliens or UFOs, the explanation appears to be faulty electronics somewhere in the sensor or recording system.

“From my experience looking at similar data from our station in Scotland, it suggests to me that the odd pattern is either (a) some sort of electronics noise from within the computer system digitizing/recording the data or (b) interference from a local power supply on the site,” he said. 

Looking at the plot, called a spectrogram, Beggan said the Schumann resonances were visible around 8, 15, and 20 Hz in the first part of the day on June 17. Around 17:00 there was a break for about an hour after which a load of noise and secondary harmonics showed up as strange patterns and swirling. 

“To me, it looks like there was some sort of computer or electronics issue, which caused the system to stop working for an hour at 17:00. Someone must have changed something like the power supply or an electronic component and then restarted it. After that, the bad component or connection was spewing out low-frequency noise which becomes aliased when transformed into a spectrogram,” explains Beggan.  

By June 21, 2023, the Space Observation System had blacked out the part of the plot showing the anomaly. 

The Verdict

The Russian Space Observation System that recorded the strange resonances explains that they followed an accident at the supply substation and are not correct. The odd pattern might be due to electronic noise from within the computer system digitizing/recording the data or interference from a local power supply on the site. The Space Observation System has since removed the data showing anomalies. Therefore, we have marked this claim as false.