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LiveScience
LiveScience
Patrick Pester

Mysterious cosmic explosion can't be explained, scientists say

A photograph of the cosmic explosion, circled in red, taken with the Very Large Telescope's HAWK-I infrared camera.

Astronomers are scratching their heads after detecting a bizarre, long-lasting cosmic explosion unlike anything previously observed.

The explosion was a series of repeated outbursts of high-energy radiation, known as a gamma-ray burst. These bursts, the most powerful known explosions in the universe, typically only last for milliseconds to minutes, yet this one was observed erupting for nearly an entire day in July.

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