Astronomers Trace Powerful Fast Radio Burst to Unique Cosmic Origins
Astronomers have traced one of the most powerful and distant fast radio bursts ever detected back to its unusual cosmic origin: a peculiar set of “blob”-shaped galaxies. This unexpected discovery could provide more insight into the reasons behind the enigmatic bursts of radio waves that have baffled scientists for years. The powerful signal, known as FRB 20220610A, was first identified on June 10, 2022, and traveled across a distance of 8 billion light years to reach Earth.
Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs) are brief, intense bursts of radio waves, lasting milliseconds and of still unknown origin. The first FRB was identified in 2007, and since then, hundreds of these fleeting cosmic flashes have been observed from distant points in the universe. The particular fast radio burst lasted less than a millisecond but was four times more energetic than previously detected FRBs.
Radio telescopes have proven useful in tracking the trajectories of fast cosmic flashes, so researchers used the Australian Square Kilometer Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) radio telescope in Western Australia and the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope in Chile to determine where the enigmatic burst originated. Observations led scientists to a gigantic celestial spot, which was initially thought to be a single irregular galaxy or a group of three interacting galaxies. However, astronomers used images from the Hubble Space Telescope to reveal that the fast radio burst came from a group of at least seven galaxies so close together that they could all fit inside the Milky Way.
The galactic group, known as a compact group, is exceptional and an example of the “densest galaxy-scale structures we know of.” The group of galaxies appears to be interacting and could even be in the process of merging, possibly triggering the fast radio burst. Investigating the origins of fast radio bursts is crucial for understanding the underlying cause that launches them across the universe.
Understanding the origin of fast radio bursts could help astronomers better determine the underlying cause that launches them across the universe. Greater knowledge of fast radio bursts could also lead to revelations about the nature of the universe. As the bursts travel through space for billions of years, they interact with cosmic material.
Astronomers envision increasingly sensitive methods for detecting fast radio bursts in the future, which could lead to discovering more of them at greater distances. With the ongoing mystery of fast radio bursts, experts are continuing to seek answers and explore the origins of these enigmatic cosmic events.
Source: CNN Espanol