Holy Space Cows! Weird Space Explosions Puzzling Astronomers

In 2018, astronomers observed a bizarre, super-powerful explosion 200 million light years away, labeled AT2018cow, or "the Cow." It brightened rapidly, surpassing typical supernovae, before fading. Since then, about a dozen more luminous fast blue optical transients (LFBOTs) have been identified, but their cause remains unclear. Possible explanations include a special kind of black hole or a weird neutron star.

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The Bizarre Space Explosions Scientists Can't Explain -Astronomers had never seen anything like it before – something vast, in the depths of space, went boom. What was it?

Mysterious ‘Cow’ Blast Studied with NASA Telescopes - In this short video, watch a possible explanation of a 'Cow' blast: what happens when a black hole tears apart a hot, dense white dwarf star.

NASA’s Hubble Finds Bizarre Explosion in Unexpected Place - A very rare, strange burst of extraordinarily bright light in the universe just got even stranger – thanks to the eagle-eye of NASA's Hubble Space Telescope. Includes a space-artist's conception of an LFBOT based on NASA data.

Astronomers Find Most Luminous "Cow" to Shine in X-Rays - This explosion initially shined with 20 times more X-ray light than the original 'Cow' event. A year later, the explosion was still sizzling with 200 times more X-ray light than that detected from the original 'Cow' event over a similar timeframe.

Another Theory Explaining 'Cow' Phenomenon - This short video offers the suggestion that a 'Cow' is likely a dying star giving birth to a black hole or neutron star