Researchers observed more than 500 of these mysterious cosmic explosions, unraveling the hidden nature of their sources.
The most popular theory suggests that FRBs come from neutron stars, the collapsed cores of massive stars. Scientists believe that the explosions could be a result of a specific type of neutron star known as a magnetar, named so for their powerful magnetic fields, thousands of trillions of times more powerful than Earth’s fields.
“The reason we think that’s true is because they are the only thing that we know of that could plausibly produce such energetic flashes in such a short duration of time,” Masui said. “Otherwise, we don’t really know how they’re created.”
Located at the Dominion Radio Astrophysical Observatory in British Columbia, Canada, the CHIME telescope began operating in 2018. The stationary telescope is made up of four giant cylindrical radio antennas.