Scientists were left with goosebumps following the discovery of a historic gamma-ray burst. In October 2022, NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope and the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory detected an extraordinary explosion. This explosion, officially known as a gamma-ray burst (GRB), has made history as the brightest of all time. It’s now often referred to as the BOAT or GRB221009A.
So, what exactly are GRBs? Scientists describe them as transient flashes of high-energy photons from cosmological distances that occur when a black hole drives a relativistic jet pointing towards Earth. The immense brightness of this particular GRB is unparalleled, surpassing any previous sightings by a factor of ten or more.
As the brightness of this GRB continues to astonish scientists, they expect to monitor it for several months. The research team is referring to it as the “brightest we have ever witnessed.” Their excitement stems from the fact that this GRB offers an unprecedented opportunity to learn more about these cosmic phenomena.
During its eruption, the GRB emitted a peculiar energy peak that immediately caught the attention of scientists. Research leader Maria Edvige Ravasio from Radboud University revealed, “When I first saw that signal, it gave me goosebumps. Our analysis since then shows it to be the first high-confidence emission line ever seen in 50 years of studying GRBs.”
Indeed, this explosion is being labeled as possibly the biggest one since the Big Bang itself. To put its magnitude into perspective, if a GRB were to occur within a few thousand light-years of Earth, it has the potential to wipe out our entire planet.
The chances of witnessing such an event are exceedingly rare, occurring only once every 10,000 years. While Earth was not in danger of destruction, the GRB was found to have impacted our atmosphere. Specifically, it disturbed one of the layers of the Earth’s atmosphere at an altitude of around 310 miles. These disturbances involve changes in the upper atmosphere’s electric field.
So what caused this famous GRB? Scientists believe that GRB221009A was created by the destructive collapse of a massive star, possibly with up to 30 times the mass of our Sun.
This remarkable discovery has not only left scientists in awe but also opened new avenues for studying these incredible cosmic events. As research continues, scientists hope to uncover more secrets about the origins and mechanisms behind gamma-ray bursts like the BOAT.
