Pigeon Poop

This mysterious static was a source of profound irritation for both men.

It was a low, steady hum that, like an unwelcome guest, appeared uninvited and refused to leave.

It was 1964. The Cuban Missile Crisis was just two years in the past. The Cold War was in the geopolitical driver’s seat, and satellite communications were front-and-center on the mind of the US government and private industry.

Arno Penzias and Robert Wilson were working on improving how this process worked—cleaning up the signal so that communications could be more effective. Despite their extensive knowledge and the sophisticated technology at their disposal here at Bell Labs, and despite recalibrating their sensitive equipment, double-checking their meticulous setup, the static persisted like a sci-fi/horror movie villain.

No matter where the two men pointed the horn-shaped radio telescope, they kept hearing a static hiss.

The only thing left to do was to climb up on top of the Holmdel Horn Antenna, to get a good …