A mysterious cosmic blast in the constellation Draco has astronomers scrambling to try to understand its cause, so unlike is it to anything ever observed before. Rather than the short-lived gamma-ray bursts typically associated with the death of a massive star — most last no more than a few hours — this explosion continues more than a week later to emanate pulses of high-energy cosmic radiation for an effect that’s brighter, longer lasting, and more variable than scientists have ever seen.
Is it possible that this is the collapse of two binary black holes?
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Cosmic Fireworks Erupt When Black Hole in Dragon's Belly Swallows Star
Posted by: Katherine Noyes April 9, 2011 05:00 AMA mysterious cosmic blast in the constellation Draco has astronomers scrambling to try to understand its cause, so unlike is it to anything ever observed before. Rather than the short-lived gamma-ray bursts typically associated with the death of a massive star — most last no more than a few hours — this explosion continues more than a week later to emanate pulses of high-energy cosmic radiation for an effect that’s brighter, longer lasting, and more variable than scientists have ever seen.