Brightest gamma-ray burst

A bit of luck helps astronomers detect the most luminous object ever recorded from Earth

Editor’s note: Set to appear in the Sept. 11 Nature is a report on a record-setting gamma-ray burst. Below is an updated version of the story, which was originally reported March 22 online at Science News.


For 40 seconds on March 13, a pinpoint of light suddenly appeared in the constellation Bootes, shining more brightly then 10 million galaxies.