It travelled 8 billion light years and just reached the Earth
Scientists have recorded the oldest and most powerful fast radio burst (FRB) - according to a publication in the journal "Science". The burst, designated as 20220610A, travelled more than half of the universe, and it took it 8 billion light years to reach Earth.
Oct 24, 2023 | updated: 2:37 AM EDT, October 25, 2023
We have known about radio bursts since 2007. That's when astronomers first recorded FRB. Since then, hundreds of similar signals have arrived on Earth, the source of which is determined to be distant points in the universe.
These short radio signals lasting in milliseconds are incredibly difficult to observe. This is due to the fact that they appear briefly, then disappear without a trace. 20220610A recently discovered lasted less than one millisecond (1 ms), but during that time it released the equivalent of the Sun's 30-year energy emission.
Exceptional flash of light
It took just a fraction of a second for the FRB to release the same amount of energy the Sun takes 30 years to produce. 20220610A turned out to be exceptional not only because of its strength, but also the distance it covered on its way to Earth. Scientists say that it exceeded the maximum value set in previous phenomena of this type by 3.5 times (roughly 25.2 trillion miles).
Co-author of the study concerning FRB 20220610A, Dr. Stuart Ryder, explains that "using the ASPAK radio antennas in Western Australia, we were able to precisely determine where the burst came from." The scientist adds that in seeking the source galaxy of 20220610A, it was found that it is older and further away than any other FRB source identified thus far.
After analyzing the path taken by the flare, astronomers discovered a group of two or three galaxies that are likely in the process of merging and creating new stars. This finding confirms the theory that FRBs originate from magnetars, which are high-energy objects that emit more or less regular flashes.
For scientists, radio bursts are a tool that allows the determination of the universe's mass. This is contributed to by the measurement of matter between different galaxies. - If we count the amount of normal matter in the Universe, it turns out that more than half of what should be there today is missing - believes Ryan Shannon, co-author of studies on 20220610A.
Fast radio bursts are incredibly important to astronomers. They allow us to discover what is not visible in the universe. It is for this reason that every - even the shortest FRB - is a significant discovery, which helps us better understand the mysteries of the cosmos.
