Scientists have detected a cosmic explosion 100 times larger than the solar system.

Recently, a team of astronomers from the University of Southampton in the United Kingdom observed it. largest cosmic explosion ever discovered, about ten times brighter than any supernova we know. The explosion, known as AT2021lxw, was the focus of a study published in the Royal Astronomical Society’s scientific journal Monthly Notices.

While most supernovae are only visible for a few months, the signal from AT2021lwx remained visible for three years and occurred about eight billion light-years from planet Earth – the signal from the explosion is still detectable by some telescopes. Scientists believe the event occurred when the universe was about six billion years old.

In addition to being the largest cosmic explosion ever detected by humanity, scientists say, About 100 times the size of the solar system and two trillion times brighter than the sun – even as our fiery star radiates the most heat..

“We arrived at this by chance when we were looking for one type of supernova, as it was flagged by our search algorithm. Most supernova and tidal slack events only last a few months before they disappear. It was immediately very unusual for something to stay bright for more than two years,” he said. Philip Wiseman.

Largest cosmic explosion ever detected

The AT2021lwx eruption was detected in the constellation Vulpecula in 2020 by the astronomical observing projects Zwicky Transient Facility (ZTF) and the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS).

Scientists suggest The explosion may have been caused by a supercharged quasara type of gas or dust cloud passing through a supermassive black hole.

In other words, they believe it. Pieces of that cloud may have fallen into a black hole, and this reaction sent shock waves through the rest of the cloud, causing it to explode.. In any case, astronomers must make more observations to understand the truth and find out what actually caused the explosion.

It’s important to note that in 2022, astronomers observed the GRB 221009A gamma-ray burst at an impressive luminosity, so the burst was not the brightest thing ever detected. But the boom was short-lived, just a fraction of the AT2021lwx’s duration.

New telescope facilities being built around the world, such as the Vera Rubin Observatory’s Ancient Space and Time Survey, will help the team better understand these rare events. Scientists believe this high-energy process is key to understanding how the centers of galaxies have changed over thousands of years.