The 18-year mystery is solved: a record energy burst has been detected in deep space along with its source.

Scientists have discovered a record energy burst in deep space originating from a binary system consisting of a small red dwarf star and the remnant of a dead star known as a white dwarf. The study has been published in the Astrophysical Journal Letters, reports Space.

Astronomers examined archival data from the Murchison Widefield Array radio telescope and detected a bright pulse of energy and radiation in radio waves, named GLEAM-X J0704-37. This radio pulse occurs every 3 hours and lasts between 30 to 60 seconds. Thus, this energy and radiation burst is the longest example of the rare phenomenon known as long-period radio transients.

Long-period radio transients were first identified in 2006, and since then, scientists have struggled to accurately determine what causes these mysterious energy bursts. Identifying the source of these events is challenging because all known long-period radio transients originate from regions of the Milky Way filled with a large number of stars. However, researchers got lucky, as GLEAM-X J0704-37 is located 5,000 light-years away from us at the edge of the Milky Way, where there are few stars.

Astronomers found that GLEAM-X J0704-37 occurs in the vicinity of a small red dwarf star. These stars make up about 70% of the stellar population in our galaxy. Scientists say that such a low-mass star cannot produce a very strong energy burst.

Further observations revealed that the red dwarf is part of a binary system, which also includes a white dwarf star. This is the remnant of a dead star similar to the Sun. Researchers believe that both stars somehow generate powerful radio emissions.

The authors of the study suggest that strong magnetic fields in the binary system trigger the release of periodic energy bursts, similar to those observed in rapidly rotating neutron stars or pulsars. Neutron stars are remnants of dead stars that are much larger than the Sun.

Currently, scientists are trying to understand the exact mechanism behind the record energy burst GLEAM-X J0704-37.