Astronomers uncover secrets of 'Biggest Of All Time' cosmic explosion

Cover Media
·1-min read

Astronomers have confirmed the origins of the brightest gamma-ray burst ever recorded in the universe.

In October 2022, an international team of researchers, including Northwestern University astrophysicists, observed the burst, GRB 221009A, also known as 'B.O.A.T' or the "brightest of all time".

Now, a team led by scientists from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois has confirmed that the phenomenon responsible for the historic burst is the collapse and subsequent explosion of a massive star.

The team discovered the explosion, or supernova, using NASA's James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).

While this discovery solves one mystery, another mystery deepens. The researchers speculated that evidence of heavy elements, such as platinum and gold, might reside within the newly uncovered supernova. The extensive search, however, did not find the signature that accompanies such elements.

"When we confirmed that the GRB was generated by the collapse of a massive star, that gave us the opportunity to test a hypothesis for how some of the heaviest elements in the universe are formed," said Northwestern's Peter Blanchard, who led the study.

"We did not see signatures of these heavy elements, suggesting that extremely energetic GRBs like the B.O.A.T. do not produce these elements. That doesn't mean that all GRBs do not produce them, but it's a key piece of information as we continue to understand where these heavy elements come from. Future observations with JWST will determine if the B.O.A.T.'s 'normal' cousins produce these elements."

The origin of heavy elements in the universe continues to remain as one of astronomy's biggest open questions.

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