Rare cosmic explosion deepens a mystery

One of the Universe's brightest outbursts seen in an unexpected location

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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.