A bizarre gamma-ray burst breaks the rules for these cosmic eruptions

Astronomers have spotted a bright gamma-ray burst that upends previous theories of how these energetic cosmic eruptions occur.

For decades, astronomers thought that GRBs came in two flavors, long and short — that is, lasting longer than two seconds or winking out more quickly. Each type has been linked to different cosmic events. But about a year ago, two NASA space telescopes caught a short GRB in long GRB’s clothing: It lasted a long time but originated from a short GRB source.

“We had this black-and-white vision of the universe,” says astrophysicist Eleonora Troja of the Tor Vergata University of Rome. “This is the red flag that tells us,

→ Continue reading at Science News

More from author

Related posts

Advertisment

Latest posts

GM pauses sales of Chevy Blazer EV over software issues | CNN Business

New York CNN  —  GM has paused sales of its brand new Chevy Blazer EVs after some customers reported...

Crypto’s 2023 was marred by fraud and scandal. It was its best year ever | CNN Business

New York CNN  —  Crypto’s 14th year in existence was one marred by scandal, bankruptcy, fraud and regulatory squabbling....

The Tantalizing Mystery of the Solar System’s Hidden Oceans

The original version of this story appeared in Quanta Magazine.For most of humankind’s existence, Earth was the only known ocean-draped world, seemingly unlike any...