# Astronomers detect most distant radio burst ever

> A flash of radio waves that travelled for over 10 billion years has reached Earth, offering new ways to map the universe.
- Title: Astronomers detect most distant radio burst ever | Shortify
- Summary: A flash of radio waves that travelled for over 10 billion years has reached Earth, offering new ways to map the universe. Astronomers detected the most…
- Keywords: fast radio bursts, frb 20240304b, astronomy, meerkat radio telescope, james webb space telescope, universe mapping, themiya nanayakkara, matthew bailes, sara webb, news, world, Astronomers
- Source: the Guardian — https://theguardian.com/science/2026/oct/09/astronomy-fast-radio-bursts-frb-radio-waves
- Published: 2026-10-08T18:00:25+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: fast radio bursts, frb 20240304b, astronomy, meerkat radio telescope, james webb space telescope, universe mapping, themiya nanayakkara, matthew bailes, sara webb, news, world
## A burst from the ancient universe
Astronomers have detected a burst of radio waves that travelled for more than ten billion years before reaching Earth. They believe it is the most distant fast radio burst ever recorded.
## What are fast radio bursts
Fast radio bursts, or FRBs, are intense bursts of radio waves that can emit as much energy in milliseconds as the sun does in months or years. They were first discovered in two thousand seven.
## The burst came from the young universe
The burst, dubbed FRB twenty twenty-four zero three zero four B, originated when the universe was only about three billion years old. It has travelled through approximately eighty percent of cosmic history.
## How astronomers found it
Scientists detected the burst using the MeerKAT radio telescope in South Africa, then identified its host galaxy using NASA's James Webb space telescope. The burst is more than double the previous distance record.
## What the burst reveals
Dr Themiya Nanayakkara of the University of Sydney said when the burst was produced, there was no Earth, there was no sun. Data showed it came from a young, very small galaxy forming stars at very high speed.

> there was no Earth, there was no sun
## FRBs map the invisible universe
FRBs are affected by particles they travel through, enabling scientists to quantify matter invisible to optical telescopes. Further detections of distant FRBs would enable scientists to map unseen matter in the distant universe.
## Key takeaway

Astronomers detected the most distant fast radio burst ever recorded, originating when the universe was three billion years old and travelling through eighty percent of cosmic history.