An infographic explaining the mechanism at the heart of Fast Radio Bursts emissions. The text reads as follows: "How Fast Radio Bursts Work: Fast radio bursts are brief, energetic blips of radio waves that originate far across the Universe. At least one repeats, which has added to the challenge of explaining what might be creating them. A new model accounts for past observations and predicts specific features that should be seen going forward. (1) A magnetar releases a flare of electrons and other charged particles. (2) The flare collides with the remnants from an old flare, creating huge magnetic fields. (3) In the ensuing shock, gyrating electrons generate energetic radio waves. As the shock slows, the radio signal downshifts to lower frequencies. Source: Quanta Magazine

Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs)

Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs) are ultra-short, ultra-powerful pulses of radio waves originating from deep space. Each burst typically lasts only a few milliseconds, yet in that blink of time, it can release as much energy as the Sun emits over several days.

An infographic explaining the mechanism at the heart of Fast Radio Bursts emissions. The text reads as follows: "How Fast Radio Bursts Work: Fast radio bursts are brief, energetic blips of radio waves that originate far across the Universe. At least one repeats, which has added to the challenge of explaining what might be creating them. A new model accounts for past observations and predicts specific features that should be seen going forward. (1) A magnetar releases a flare of electrons and other charged particles. (2) The flare collides with the remnants from an old flare, creating huge magnetic fields. (3) In the ensuing shock, gyrating electrons generate energetic radio waves. As the shock slows, the radio signal downshifts to lower frequencies. Source: Quanta Magazine

Their discovery in 2007 was serendipitous. And ever since, FRBs have puzzled and intrigued astrophysicists worldwide due to their intensity, brevity, and mysterious origins.

While some FRBs repeat, others do not.

Their progenitors are still debated, ranging from magnetars and collapsing neutron stars to more exotic suggestions like axion miniclusters.

One of the most promising explanations involves magnetars, a type of neutron star with an extraordinarily strong magnetic field. When stress builds in a magnetar’s magnetosphere, it may snap violently, emitting a tremendous radio pulse. Other hypotheses include cataclysmic events like mergers between neutron stars, the collapse of pulsars, or even more speculative phenomena. Some FRBs repeat over time, suggesting ongoing processes, while others are one-off events, perhaps tied to explosive cosmic transitions.

Beyond their mysterious origins, FRBs are incredibly useful scientific tools as cosmic probes due to their brightness, brevity and broadband nature.

As their signals travel across billions of light-years, they pass through clouds of ionized gas and intergalactic plasma. This interaction subtly alters their properties, allowing scientists to use them to trace the distribution of matter across the Universe, especially the elusive baryons that do not appear in stars or galaxies.

In this way, FRBs act like cosmic sonar, illuminating the dark spaces between galaxies.

Research began pinpointing fast radio burst sources with increasing accuracy. One 2020 breakthrough traced an FRB to a magnetar in the Milky Way, confirming the viability of at least one origin theory.

Meanwhile, discoveries of bursts emanating from massive elliptical galaxies – largely devoid of star formation – have challenged assumptions and expanded the search for alternative mechanisms. Each new detection deepens the mystery, while also widening the window into understanding the invisible scaffolding of the cosmos.

Little 'Bytes' about Natural Phenomena, Theoretical Physics and the Latest Worldwide Scientific Findings. Edited from Glasgow, Scotland.