A team of researchers has narrowed down the location of a “fast radio burst” (FRB) using sensitive radio observations from the
Very Large Array. The burster in question was first discovered in 2012, and researchers obtained a rough location then, but the new pinpointing is roughly a thousand times more precise. While they weren't able to determine the nature of the bursts' source with this study, this marks a significant step toward doing so.
Researchers observed the first FRB in 2007, and only about 19 have been observed so far. These events were characterized by, as their name implies, a rapid, high-intensity burst of radio waves. A number of known objects
might produce bursts like the FRBs, but it’s been difficult to find out which one(s) are actually causing them. This leaves them a bit of an enigma.
