Science Frontier ·
Black Hole Shreds Massive Star in Most Powerful Stellar Explosion Ever Seen
Astronomers recorded the most powerful stellar explosion ever, AT2024wpp, triggered when a black hole shredded a massive star. In other breakthroughs, AI decoded sperm whale communication revealing a phonetic alphabet and dialects, ancient human DNA was found on cave walls for the first time, and an injection halved chromosome errors in older human eggs. Gravitational waves from a black hole merger also confirmed how spinning black holes drag spacetime.
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Black hole shreds massive star in brightest stellar explosion ever recorded. The event, AT2024wpp, released energy equivalent to 400 billion Suns, surpassing any known supernova. It belongs to a rare class called Luminous Fast Blue Optical Transients. 1
Gravitational wave reveals spacetime whirlpool from colliding black holes. Using the merger event GW250114, scientists decoded a direct wave showing how the black hole drags spacetime around it, confirming Einstein's frame-dragging prediction. 2
AI decoding of sperm whale clicks reveals phonetic alphabet and dialects. Researchers found that sperm whales use patterns similar to human language, with distinct regional dialects in the Mediterranean Sea. 3
Injection halves risk of chromosome errors in older human eggs. The mRNA injection boosts production of a key protein, reducing aneuploidy that causes miscarriage and conditions like Down's syndrome. 4
Ancient human DNA discovered preserved on cave walls for the first time. Researchers found traces of DNA from rock art in Spanish and Portuguese caves, linking artists to the artwork after thousands of years. 5
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