CHIME and the Outriggers detected a bright fast radio burst named RBFLOAT in March 2025. The pulse lasted a few milliseconds and released energy equal to four days of the Sun's output. A new analysis method localized the source to a 13-parsec region in an arm of spiral galaxy NGC 4141, 130 million light-years away in Ursa Major. Optical and X-ray observations provided complementary data. The event was non-repeating and represents one of the most precisely localized single FRBs to date.
The pulse, identified as RBFLOAT, arrived in March 2025, lasted just a few milliseconds, and released as much energy as the sun produces in four days. Thanks to a new method of analysis, the researchers located its origin in an arm of a spiral galaxy located 130 million light-years away, in the direction of the constellation Ursa Major. The research was published in the journal The Astrophysical Journal Letters.
The CHIME radio telescope in Canada, one of the world's leading FRB observatories, and a subnetwork of smaller stations called Outriggers detected the anomalous outburst. CHIME characterized the signal, while the Outriggers triangulated it to a narrow region of space. Optical and X-ray telescopes then provided complementary data. The team achieved a precision of 13 parsecs, equivalent to 42 light-years, within the galaxy NGC 4141.
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