Fast Radio Bursts: Cosmic Fireworks Light up the Universe

Talk Abstract

The Universe is brimming with violent and energetic explosions, from volcanic eruptions here on Earth to the explosive deaths of massive stars across the Milky Way and in other galaxies. Many of these short-lived explosions (or “transients”) come from some of the most extreme objects in the Universe such as neutron stars and black holes. Astronomers recently discovered a new type of transient, fast radio bursts (FRBs), which release the same amount of energy in less than a millisecond as the Sun will produce in a whole year. Despite nearly two decades of research, we are still not sure what objects produce these mysterious FRBs. In this talk, I will walk through a catalog of transients originating from Earth to our Solar System and far beyond. I will also discuss the discovery of FRBs, our hunt to figure out how they’re made, and what FRBs can tell us about otherwise “invisible” parts of the Universe.