Free Astronomy Magazine September-October 2022

52 SEPTEMBER-OCTOBER 2022 ASTRO PUBLISHING record. The research results have been published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters . Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are the brightest and most energetic explo- sions in the Universe, capable of emitting more energy in a matter of seconds than our Sun will emit during its entire lifetime. GRB 211106A belongs to a GRB sub-class known as short-duration gamma-ray bursts. These explosions — which scientists believe are re- sponsible for the creation of the heaviest elements in the Universe, such as platinum and gold — result from the catastrophic merger of binary star systems containing a neutron star. “These mergers occur because of gravitational wave radi- ation that removes energy from the orbit of the binary stars, causing the stars to spiral in toward each other,” said Tanmoy Laskar, who by ALMA Observatory Nicolás Lira First recording of a short GRB at millimeter wavelengths S cientists using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have for the first time recorded millimeter-wave- length light from a fiery explosion caused by the merger of a neutron star with another star. The team also confirmed this flash of light to be one of the most energetic short- duration gamma-ray bursts ever observed, leaving behind one of the most luminous afterglows on