Radio burst spotted by NASA for the first time in Milky Way

November 6, 2020

NASA recently reported that it observed a mix of radio signals and X-ray in Milky Way in April 2020. This has never been observed earlier in the galaxy. NASA has also reported the spotting of Fast Radio Bursts. This was detected by the CHIME telescope.

Key Highlights

The Fast Radio Bursts were discovered in 2007. However, this is the first time the radio bursts were spotted in Milky Way Galaxy. Though, the radio bursts were discovered, their source of origin couldn’t be located.

The first radio burst was observed in 2007 during a pulsar survey data. So far only one radio burst is repeating itself. It is repeating every 16.35 days regularly.

What are Fast Radio Bursts?

Fast Radio Bursts are bright bursts of radio waves produced by astronomical objects with changing magnetic fields. The duration of these bursts last only for milli-second. Due to this short duration of occurrence, it is highly difficult to spot Fast Radio Bursts.

Origin of Milky Way Radio Burst

The Fast Radio Burst spotted in Milky Way Galaxy in April 2020 was from a powerful neutron star. It is referred to as Magnetar. It is located in the constellation Vulpecula.

The X-ray burst from the star lasted for less than a second. On the other hand, the radio burst from the star lasted for one-thousandth of a second. This was the brightest of the any other radio transmissions from magnetars.