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Astronomers researching the mysterious Fast Radio Burst (FRB) 121102 have confirmed that the powerful phenomenon has a predictable cycle, which may allow us to find out exactly what is causing it once and for all.
First discovered in 2012, the FRB is located in a dwarf galaxy 3 billion light years away, making it very difficult to monitor, requiring some of Earth’s most powerful instruments.
FRBs are intense radio wave explosions that can unleash as much power as hundreds of millions of suns in a matter of milliseconds, but the majority of them we’ve seen have erupted once only to vanish, never to ever again. to be heard.
This makes it extremely difficult to discover their composition, track their behavior, and determine their source. In other words, they are extremely difficult to study let alone predict because scientists have just dealt with them.
A team led by Marilyn Cruces of the Max Planck Institute for Radio Astronomy, in conjunction with other research conducted at the University of Manchester by astronomer Kaustubh Rajwade, unveiled their model for the FRB cycle.
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For 67 days, FRB 121102 darkens, making no noise and effectively disappearing only to “ wake up ” again for 90 days, producing those breathtaking millisecond radio rockets that are so powerful we can see them billions of light years away here on Earth. .
According to Cruces’ prediction for the FRB’s repetitive and predictable 157-day cycle, its current flaring phase will last from July 9 to October 14, 2020 before hibernating again.
Several international teams, including the National Astronomical Observatory of China, which uses the Five Hundred Meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST), will continue to monitor FRB 121102 to try to understand what is behind these bursts.
Now, researchers around the world have a specific time frame to collect data before they have a predetermined time period for in-depth study without worrying about missing a key detail or event.
Only a few FRBs have been detected repeating themselves and they will likely hold the key to unraveling the mystery once and for all and allowing us to determine what is really behind these incredibly powerful explosions. The main theory suggests that some type of neutron star called a magnetar is responsible, but the mystery remains for now at least.
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