Strange flashes from ancient galaxy deepen mystery of fast radio bursts

Fast radio bursts (FRBs) — mysterious, millisecond-long flashes of energy — might be even weirder than we thought. Most FRBs are thought to come from magnetars, dead stars that usually form in young galaxies and host powerful magnetic fields. Now, astronomers have traced the origin of an FRB to the edge of an ancient galaxy in which stellar activity has slowed, which provides evidence that at least some FRBs must come from another source.