Scientists have connected the two largest radio telescopes in the world to closely observe the mysterious “colors” of a phenomenon between galaxies known as Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs).
FRBs are some of the most powerful energy bursts in the universe, containing more energy than the Sun produces in three days, appearing as bright flashes lasting only a few milliseconds.
Scientists utilized the two largest radio telescopes in the world and discovered the color of the burst in a fraction of a millisecond.
Thousands of FRBs flash across the universe every day, but our naked eyes cannot see them. FRBs only emit at radio wavelengths, far beyond the red edge of the visible spectrum.
However, the radio spectrum does contain a miniature rainbow in its own right, with shorter radio wavelengths appearing blue to radio telescopes and longer wavelengths appearing slightly red.
Using the Low Frequency Array (LOFAR) and the Westerbork Synthesis Radio Telescope (two radio telescopes from different facilities in the Netherlands), researchers discovered a periodically repeating FRB named 20180916B, which emits a series of bursts every 16 days or longer.
Astronomers reported how the Westerbork telescope detected a short, periodic fast radio burst in the high-frequency radio sky, blue, while the LOFAR telescope detected a low-frequency red burst from the same point a few days later.
They concluded that FRB 20180916B is being generated by a magnetar. As the magnetar slowly rotates, its bright magnetic field can beam towards Earth every two weeks or so, creating the repeating FRB observed in this study.
This explanation also aligns with 2020 FRB research, where scientists identified another FRB associated with a known magnetar in the Milky Way, providing the first accurate source of an FRB.
