Astronomers have been left baffled by a giant mystery object in space that shines 570 billion times brighter than our sun. The object, believed to have a solid core just 10 miles long, is emitting more light than the laws of physics ever said possible.
Those studying the huge object at Ohio State University have been searching for answers as to what the mystery light could be. One explanation is that the incredible light source is a massive ball of gas, emitting more energy than 100 billion of our suns and outshining our own Milky Way galaxy 50 times over.
The giant gas ball, named ASSASSN-15lh, is currently over three billion light years away and cannot be seen with the naked eye. Astronomers at Ohio University have been using a series of specialised telescopes to detect light radiation from the object.
In their weekly 'Science' journal, professors at the American university claim the 10-mile-long object at the centre of the light could be a rare star called a magnetar. A magnetar is so powerful that it actually breaks the laws of physics, which state there is a limit to how much energy an object can emit.
Professor Krzysztof Stanek said: 'We have to ask, how is that even possible? It takes a lot of energy to shine that bright, and that energy has to come from somewhere.' Lead author of Science journal Subo Dong added: 'The honest answer is at this point we do not know what could be the power source for ASASSN-15lh.'
Another explanation for the mystery supernova could be an extremely rare type of star called a millisecond magnetar, which spins rapidly – up to 1,000 times a second – adding to its density and powerful magnetic field. Later this year, the Hubble Space Telescope will help astronomers answer their question as to what the mystery object actually is by transmitting information from its host galaxy back to earth.
