Free Astronomy Magazine March-April 2026

49 MARCH-APRIL 2026 ASTRO PUBLISHING tronomers encounter, each with its characteristic spectrum of light that evolves over time. Figuring out the processes that pro- duce these unique light signatures tests current knowledge of the physics of black holes and helps as- tronomers understand the evolu- tion of stars in our Universe. The team’s analysis of AT 2024wpp is presented in two articles published by The Astrophysical Journal Let- ters . The studies utilize data from a large collection of telescopes that measured the various wavelengths A close-up of the luminous fast blue optical transient named AT 2024wpp. [International Gemini Observatory/CTIO/NOIRLab/DOE/NSF/AURA/NASA/ ESA/Hubble/Swift/CXC/ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO). Image Processing: J. Miller & M. Rodriguez (International Gemini Observatory/ NSF NOIRLab), T.A. Rector (Univer- sity of Alaska Anchorage/NSF NOIRLab), D. de Martin & M. Zamani (NSF NOIRLab)] of light emitted by the LFBOT. Cru- cial near-infared data was collected with the Flamingos-2 instrument on the Gemini South telescope in Chile, one half of the International Gem- ini Observatory, funded in part by the U.S. National Science Founda- tion and operated by NSF NOIRLab “The ongoing discovery of luminous fast blue optical transients shows that Gemini South and other ground-based astronomical facili- ties are primed to characterize these mysterious objects,” says Mar- tin Still, NSF program director for the International Gemini Observa- tory. “We expect the NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory will spot large numbers of these transient objects, giving Gemini and other telescopes unprecedented opportunities for detailed follow-up observations.” LFBOTs got their name because they are bright — they’re visible over dis- tances of hundreds of millions to billions of light years — and last for only a few days. They produce high- energy light ranging from the blue end of the optical spectrum through ultraviolet and X-ray. The first was seen in 2014, but the first with suf- ficient data to analyze was recorded in 2018 and, per the standard nam- ing convention, was called AT 2018cow. The name led researchers to refer to it as the Cow, and subse- quent LFBOTs have been called, tongue in cheek, the Koala (ZTF18- abvkwla), the Tasmanian devil (AT 2022tsd) and the Finch (AT 2023- fhn). Perhaps AT 2024wpp will be known as the Wasp. The realization that AT 2024wpp could not have re- sulted from a supernova came after the researchers calculated the en- ergy it emitted. It turned out to be 100 times greater than what would be produced in a normal supernova. The radiated energy would require the conversion of about 10% of the rest-mass of the Sun into energy over a very short time scale of weeks. Specifically, the Gemini South obser- vations revealed an excess of near- infrared light being emitted from the source. This is only the second time astronomers have observed such a phenomenon (the other case being AT 2018cow), which is clearly not present in ordinary stellar ex- plosions. These observations estab- lish the near-infrared excess as a hallmark feature of LFBOTs, though no model can explain this occur- rence. “The sheer amount of radi- ated energy from these bursts is so