We have detected a strange new signal from across the chasm of time and space. A repeating fast radio burst source detected last year was recorded spitting out a whopping 1,863 bursts over 82 hours, amid a total of 91 hours of observation.

More than 15 years after fast radio bursts were discovered, new research has both unraveled and deepened the mystery of the sources of these deep space phenomena.

Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are intense pulses of radio wave energy that usually last only a matter of milliseconds and come from somewhere deep in the cosmos. Astrophysicists detect these signals emanating mostly from faraway galaxies, but they do not yet understand the origin of the pulses. The bursts are extremely intense at their source, putting out as much energy in one millisecond as the Sun does in an entire day. However, by the time they reach earth they are very weak and difficult to detect.

Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are millisecond-long cosmic explosions that each produce the energy equivalent to the sun's annual output. More than 15 years after the deep-space pulses of electromagnetic radio waves were first discovered, their perplexing nature continues to surprise scientists—and newly published research only deepens the mystery surrounding them.

New study by international team of scientists reveals an evolving, magnetized environment and surprising source location for deep-space fast radio bursts – observations that defy current understanding.

An unusual blast of radio waves from deep space had a sense of rhythm. Over the few seconds in December 2019 when the burst was detected, it kept a steady beat. That tempo holds clues to the potential origin of the mysterious outburst, one of a class of flares called fast radio bursts.

An unusual blast of radio waves from deep space had a sense of rhythm. Over the few seconds in December 2019 when the burst was detected, it kept a steady beat. That tempo holds clues to the potential origin of the mysterious outburst, one of a class of flares called fast radio bursts.

An international team of scientists using the world’s largest radio telescope has detected a mysterious series of bright flashes from 3 billion light years away.