Go Unlimited with Magzter GOLD
Get unlimited access to 10,000+ magazines, newspapers and Premium stories for just
Rare cosmic explosion deepens a mystery
BBC Sky at Night Magazine
|December 2023
One of the Universe's brightest outbursts seen in an unexpected location
-
Astronomers have spotted a rare burst of light that's thought to be one of the Universe's brightest phenomena, but it has only served to deepen the mystery of what causes these unusual events.
Luminous Fast Blue Optical Transients (LFBOTS) are very blue in colour and evolve rapidly, reaching their peak brightness and then fading away in a matter of days. Their short-lived nature makes them difficult to spot, and the first, dubbed 'the Cow', was only discovered in 2018.
This story is from the December 2023 edition of BBC Sky at Night Magazine.
Subscribe to Magzter GOLD to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 10,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
MORE STORIES FROM BBC Sky at Night Magazine
BBC Sky at Night Magazine
MOONWATCH
January's top lunar feature to observe
2 mins
January 2026
BBC Sky at Night Magazine
Speed up your processing workflow
How to use Photoshop's Actions tool to drastically cut your processing time
3 mins
January 2026
BBC Sky at Night Magazine
Chasing Canada's polar lights
With solar maximum peaking and a new Moon promising dark skies, Jamie Carter travels to Churchill, Manitoba to hunt the Northern Lights - and dodge polar bears – in Canada's far north
7 mins
January 2026
BBC Sky at Night Magazine
Beyond Pluto: The search for the hidden planets
Could one – or even two - undiscovered planets lurk at the edges of our Solar System? Nicky Jenner explores how close we are to finding the elusive 'Planet 9'
6 mins
January 2026
BBC Sky at Night Magazine
Jupiter moon events
Jupiter is a magnificent planet to observe.
2 mins
January 2026
BBC Sky at Night Magazine
What samples from space have taught us
Alastair Gunn explains what scientists have learnt in the 20 years since the first unmanned mission brought materials back from alien worlds
3 mins
January 2026
BBC Sky at Night Magazine
The Milky Way as you've never seen it before
This is the largest low-frequency radio colour image of our Galaxy ever assembled
1 min
January 2026
BBC Sky at Night Magazine
Merger of ‘impossibly' massive black holes explained
Scientists discover how enormous, fast-spinning black holes can exist after all
1 mins
January 2026
BBC Sky at Night Magazine
Lunar occultation of the Pleiades
BEST TIME TO SEE: 27 January from 20:30 UT
1 min
January 2026
BBC Sky at Night Magazine
The Universe's expansion may be slowing down
New study suggests current theories of dark energy could be wrong
1 mins
January 2026
Translate
Change font size