Get the key facts about this explosive story in our quick, 1-minute read:
- Biggest bangs: Astrophysicists at the University of Hawaiʻi's Institute for Astronomy (IfA) have uncovered the most energetic explosions observed since the Big Bang.
- What are ENTs? Extreme nuclear transients (ENTs) they occur when massive stars – at least three times the mass of the Sun – get shredded by the tidal forces of supermassive black holes
- Mind-blowing energy release: One ENT, dubbed Gaia18cdj, emitted over 25 times more energy than the brightest known supernovae, radiating the equivalent of 100 Suns in a single year
- Orders of magnitude brighter: ENTs are around 10 times more luminous than typical tidal disruption events and can stay bright for year – far longer than supernovae
- Extremely rare flashes: These events are exceptionally uncommon, about 10 million times less frequent than supernovae, making each detection a significant observational achievement
- Why they matter: ENTs offer a new window into studying supermassive black holes in distant galaxies, especially during a formative epoch when galaxies and black holes were more active
- The hunt continues: Next-generation observatories like the Vera C. Rubin Observatory and NASA’s Roman Space Telescope will enhance our ability to find and study these rare cosmic flash-bangs
Get all the facts in our full coverage of the biggest explosions discovered since the Big Bang
