Largest Cosmic Explosion Ever Seen Continues After Appearing Suddenly 3 Years Ago
Astronomers from the University of Southampton say they have discovered the most massive cosmic explosion ever recorded, which has continued to put out a terrifying amount of energy for the last three years.
The explosion, known as AT2021lwx, is more than ten times brighter than any known supernova (an exploding star) and three times brighter than the brightest tidal disruption event (when a star falls into a supermassive black hole). It is reportedly 100 times the size of our solar system.
The explosion has been visible for over three years, much longer than most supernovae, and is located nearly 8 billion light-years away. Most supernovae last only a few months, but astronomers say this one is still being detected by a network of telescopes….