A rare dead star erupted into a giant eruption in a nearby galaxy.
For the first time, scientists can see how the processes that produce these flares work, thanks to the changes in its brightness documented.
The star emits as much energy as the Sun does in 100 thousand years, when it erupts at a rate of 160 million mph.
The energy that was released from the GRB 2001415 is equivalent to the energy that our Sun emits in a hundred thousand years.
Magnetars have to be close to the most peculiar stars. The collapsed, dead cores of once-massive stars are packed into an ultra dense sphere just 20 kilometers across.
A magnetic field is what a magnetar brings to the table. The magnetic structures are 1000 times more powerful than a typical neutron star and a quadrillion times more powerful than Earth.
We know that they result in some interesting behaviors. Magnetar earthquakes are caused by the inward pressure of gravity competing with the magnetic field. Scientists believe that the earthquakes are the strongest contender for the signals known as fast radio bursts, which emit more radio energy than 500 million Suns.
These earthquakes are unpredictable and have been challenging to observe. The instrument on the International Space Station was designed to monitor Earth's atmosphere, but it picked up something far away. The event was called GRB 2001415 and it was determined by a magnetar in another galaxy.
The team led by Castro-Tirado has analyzed the eruption using artificial intelligence to measure the brightness of the magnetar during the eruption.
The signal's short duration causes it to decay and become embedded in background noise. Victor Reglero, an astronomer at the University of Valencia in Spain, explained that it is difficult to distinguish the signal of correlated noise.
The intelligence of the system that we have developed at the University of Valencia has allowed us to detect this spectacular phenomenon.
The team's analysis shows that the waves are consistent with waves in the magnetar's magnetosphere triggered by a quake. These waves bounce back and forth between the magnetic field lines, releasing energy as they interact in a process called magnetic reconnection, which can lead to flares in our own star.
The team determined that the volume of the eruption was equal to or greater than the volume of the magnetar. Considering the gulf of space across which the emission traveled, it's pretty danged spectacular. It's the most far away of the magnets for which such an eruption has been observed.
It has been said that the magnetar wanted to indicate its existence to us from its solitude, singing in the kHz with the force of a Pavarotti of a billion suns. A true monster!
The research was published in Nature.