FRB 20250316A: A Brilliant and Nearby One-Off Fast Radio Burst Localized to 13 parsec Precision

TL;DR

This paper reports the first precise localization of a nearby, apparently one-off FRB using VLBI, revealing its environment and constraining its properties, with implications for understanding FRB progenitors.

Contribution

It demonstrates the use of full CHIME Outriggers VLBI to localize a one-off FRB at 13-pc precision, enabling detailed environmental analysis and progenitor constraints.

Findings

No persistent radio source detected at the FRB site.

FRB 20250316A is inconsistent with known repeaters based on burst non-detections.

The FRB is offset from the nearest star-forming region by about 190 pc.

Abstract

Precise localizations of a small number of repeating fast radio bursts (FRBs) using very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) have enabled multiwavelength follow-up observations revealing diverse local environments. However, the 2--3\% of FRB sources that are observed to repeat may not be representative of the full population. Here we use the VLBI capabilities of the full CHIME Outriggers array for the first time to localize a nearby (40 Mpc), bright (kJy), and apparently one-off FRB source, FRB 20250316A, to its environment on 13-pc scales. We use optical and radio observations to place deep constraints on associated transient emission and the properties of its local environment. We place a $5\sigma$ upper limit of $L_{\mathrm{9.9~\mathrm{GHz}}} < 2.1\times10^{25}~\mathrm{erg~s^{-1}~Hz^{-1}}$ on spatially coincident radio emission, a factor of 100 lower than any known compact persistent radio source associated with an FRB. Our KCWI observations allow us to characterize the gas density, metallicity, nature of gas ionization, dust extinction and star-formation rate through emission line fluxes. We leverage the exceptional brightness and proximity of this source to place deep constraints on the repetition of FRB 20250316A, and find it is inconsistent with all well-studied repeaters given the non-detection of bursts at lower spectral energies. We explore the implications of a measured offset of 190$\pm20$ pc from the center of the nearest star-formation region, in the context of progenitor channels. FRB 20250316A marks the beginning of an era of routine localizations for one-off FRBs on tens of mas-scales, enabling large-scale studies of their local environments.