Mysterious fast radio burst traced back to massive ‘cosmic graveyard’ of ancient stars

Most FRBs flare once, lasting mere milliseconds and emitting more energy than the sun radiates in a year. However, FRB 20240209A flared repeatedly, with the same source generating 21 pulses between February and July 2024.

Six of these pulses were detected by a smaller version of CHIME, an “outrigger” telescope located around 37.3 miles (60 kilometers) from the main instrument. These outriggers exist to allow astronomers to pinpoint the source of the FRBs CHIME detects. Thus, the team was able to do this backtracking exercise for FRB 20240209A.