Brightest Explosion Ever Observed

[Astronuc]

Scientists have detected a flash of light from across the Galaxy so powerful that it bounced off the Moon and lit up the Earth's upper atmosphere. This "giant flare" was the http://www.everything-science.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=111&Itemid=2 ever detected from beyond the Solar System. For over a tenth of a second the remarkable flare was actually brighter than a full moon.

The neutron star that erupted is SGR 1806-20, about 50,000 light years from Earth in the constellation Sagittarius.

 

[Janitor]

... The neutron star...

I noticed last night on CNN that the news anchor called it a "neuron" star.

 

[DaveC426913]

Would this event have been visible to naked-eye observers?

 

[omicron]

Would this event have been visible to naked-eye observers?

No (I wish we could have).

It would have been impossible to see the explosion with the naked eye. It also was impossible for optical telescopes to spot because the blast was brightest in the gamma-ray range, not in the optical light range.

http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=570&ncid=753&e=3&u=/nm/20050218/sc_nm/space_explosion_dc

 

[marcus]

here's the NASA link that omicron's newsitem gives
http://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/watchtheskies/swift_nsu_020 5.html

 

[turbo]

Thanks for the link, Marcus - nice animations on that site. By the way, if you want to edit the link, you left a space between the zero and the five, and that leads to a "page not found" type message.

http://www.nasa.gov/vision/universe/watchtheskies/swift_nsu_0205.html

 

[Eridanus1]

Brightest gamma ray burst within milky way

Let's hope there isn't a invisible magnetic neutron star circling a nearby star within 10 l/y... otherwise could be in big trouble:

http://www.spaceflightnow.com/news/n0502/19grb/

Is there anything to rule out an unseen neutron star drifting the dark within say 10 - 20 l/y from the sun?

 

[SpaceTiger]

Is there anything to rule out an unseen neutron star drifting the dark within say 10 - 20 l/y from the sun?

Absolutely. At this point, we can see everything within 10-20 light years that's more massive than a planet...and even some of those are now detectable. Besides, the article says it:

"Fortunately, there are no magnetars anywhere near the earth."

 

[Mean-Hippy]

What about stars that may go supernova within, says 1000 years from now? This if I recal can be dangerous on a very lage distance too no ? Have we ever looked at that possibility seriously ?

 

[SpaceTiger]

What about stars that may go supernova within, says 1000 years from now? This if I recal can be dangerous on a very lage distance too no ? Have we ever looked at that possibility seriously ?

Yeah, though I wouldn't worry about it too much. I think this may be the most serious candidate for such an explosion:

http://www.astro.uiuc.edu/~kaler/sow/betelgeuse.html

I haven't seen precise calculations as to the impact of such an event, but it would likely be little more than a nuisance (frying instruments, maybe increasing cancer rates, etc.). If there were a gamma-ray burst in our galaxy (and pointed at us), there might be a little more cause for concern. These events are extremely rare, however.

 

[setAI]

I noticed last night on CNN that the news anchor called it a "neuron" star.

a neuron star would be a rather more historic and universe changing discovery!