The discovery and scientific potential of fast radio bursts

TL;DR

Fast radio bursts are brief, intense radio signals from distant cosmic sources, likely neutron stars, with some repeating and providing insights into the universe's baryonic content and magnetic environments.

Contribution

This review summarizes the discovery, current understanding, and future research directions of FRBs, highlighting recent observational breakthroughs and their implications.

Findings

FRBs originate from neutron stars in distant galaxies.

Some FRBs are repeaters with cyclic activity.

Host galaxies of FRBs have been identified, informing cosmic baryon studies.

Abstract

Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are millisecond-timescale bursts of coherent radio emission that are luminous enough to be detectable at cosmological distances. In this review I describe the discovery of FRBs, subsequent advances in our understanding of them, and future prospects. Thousands of potentially observable FRBs reach Earth every day; they probably originate from highly magnetic and/or rapidly rotating neutron stars in the distant Universe. Some FRBs repeat, with this sub-class often occurring in highly magnetic environments. Two repeaters exhibit cyclic activity windows, consistent with an orbital period. One nearby FRB was from a Galactic magnetar during an X-ray outburst. The host galaxies of some FRBs have been located, providing information about the host environments and the total baryonic content of the Universe.