Chromatic periodic activity down to 120 megahertz in a fast radio burst
Artikel i vetenskaplig tidskrift, 2021

Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are extragalactic astrophysical transients(1) whose brightness requires emitters that are highly energetic yet compact enough to produce the short, millisecond-duration bursts. FRBs have thus far been detected at frequencies from 8 gigahertz (ref. (2)) down to 300 megahertz (ref. (3)), but lower-frequency emission has remained elusive. Some FRBs repeat(4-6), and one of the most frequently detected, FRB 20180916B(7), has a periodicity cycle of 16.35 days (ref. (8)). Using simultaneous radio data spanning a wide range of wavelengths (a factor of more than 10), here we show that FRB 20180916B emits down to 120 megahertz, and that its activity window is frequency dependent (that is, chromatic). The window is both narrower and earlier at higher frequencies. Binary wind interaction models predict a wider window at higher frequencies, the opposite of our observations. Our full-cycle coverage shows that the 16.3-day periodicity is not aliased. We establish that low-frequency FRB emission can escape the local medium. For bursts of the same fluence, FRB 20180916B is more active below 200 megahertz than at 1.4 gigahertz. Combining our results with previous upper limits on the all-sky FRB rate at 150 megahertz, we find there are 3-450 FRBs in the sky per day above 50 Jy ms. Our chromatic results strongly disfavour scenarios in which absorption from strong stellar winds causes FRB periodicity. We demonstrate that some FRBs are found in 'clean' environments that do not absorb or scatter low-frequency radiation. The fast radio burst FRB 20180916B repeats with a periodicity of 16 days, and is now found to emit down to a frequency of 120 MHz, much lower than previously observed.

Författare

Ines Pastor-Marazuela

Universiteit Van Amsterdam

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Liam Connor

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Universiteit Van Amsterdam

California Institute of Technology (Caltech)

Joeri van Leeuwen

Universiteit Van Amsterdam

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Yogesh Maan

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Sander ter Veen

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Anna Bilous

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Leon Oostrum

Universiteit Van Amsterdam

Netherlands eScience Center

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Emily Petroff

Universiteit Van Amsterdam

Samayra Straal

New York University

Dany Vohl

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Jisk Attema

Netherlands eScience Center

Oliver M. Boersma

Universiteit Van Amsterdam

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Eric Kooistra

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Daniel van der Schuur

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Alessio Sclocco

Netherlands eScience Center

Roy Smits

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Elizabeth A. K. Adams

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Kapteyn Astronomical Institute

Bjoern Adebahr

Ruhr-Universität Bochum

W. J. G. de Blok

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

University of Cape Town

Kapteyn Astronomical Institute

Arthur H. W. M. Coolen

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Sieds Damstra

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Helga Denes

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Kelley M. Hess

Kapteyn Astronomical Institute

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Thijs van der Hulst

Kapteyn Astronomical Institute

Marianna Ivashina

Chalmers, Elektroteknik, Kommunikation, Antenner och Optiska Nätverk

Alexander Kutkin

Russian Academy of Sciences

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

G. Marcel Loose

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Danielle M. Lucero

Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

Agnes Mika

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Vanessa A. Moss

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO)

The University of Sydney

Henk Mulder

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Menno J. Norden

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Tom Oosterloo

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Kapteyn Astronomical Institute

Emanuela Orru

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Mark Ruiter

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Stefan J. Wijnholds

Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON)

Nature

0028-0836 (ISSN) 1476-4687 (eISSN)

Vol. 596 7873 505-508

Ämneskategorier

Meteorologi och atmosfärforskning

Astronomi, astrofysik och kosmologi

Signalbehandling

DOI

10.1038/s41586-021-03724-8

PubMed

34433943

Mer information

Senast uppdaterat

2022-04-05