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the shapes of the colliding nuclei. From their

analysis, the authors calculated the relative
Astronomy
axis lengths of the ellipsoidal shape of ura-

Mysterious radio bursts

nium-238 nuclei. These lengths were strikingly
similar to those estimated from measurements
of these nuclei hitting a fixed target while trav-
elling at much lower speeds (and thus lower
energies). This alone is fascinating, because are from massive galaxies
there are effects at play on scales smaller
than that of protons and neutrons, and one
Daniele Michilli
could easily expect these factors to affect
the patterns of the particles generated in the Powerful bursts of radio waves from distant galaxies are
high-energy collisions, obscuring the effect typically linked to young celestial objects. But observations
of nuclear deformation.
The STAR Collaboration’s work has key impli-
reveal that they are more likely to occur in rarer, more massive
cations for nuclear-structure research. It is galaxies, offering clues to their enigmatic origins. See p.61
notoriously difficult to determine the rigidity
of nuclear shapes on the basis of experimental
data obtained at low beam energies. For exam- Fast radio bursts (FRBs) are brief flashes of Between February 2022 and November
ple, the quadrupole moment is one of the main radio waves that are energetic enough to be 2023, Sharma and colleagues determined the
measures used to study nuclear deformation, observed from Earth — even when they come host galaxies of 26 FRBs using a grid of anten-
but this moment can take the same value for a from far-flung galaxies1. Although the source nas in California, called the Deep Synoptic
‘rigid’ nucleus, with a well-defined ellipsoidal of these bursts is unknown, the discovery of Array (DSA-110). After adding another 26 FRB
shape, and for a ‘soft’ one, with a fluctuating an FRB-like signal emanating from an object host galaxies from previous studies, the
shape. In the latter case, the measured value in the Milky Way provides a hint: a rare type authors then selected 20 galaxies from this
of the quadrupole moment corresponds to of neutron star called a magnetar2. However, sample, having excluded those that are too
the equilibrium shape around which the fluc- the Galactic burst was considerably weaker distant for detailed study. This reduced sam-
tuations occur. The standard variables probed than other known FRBs, and a confirmed FRB ple confirms that FRBs typically originate in
in low-energy nuclear physics experiments from an old population of stars adds another regions with young stellar populations. How-
are thus ill suited to distinguishing between confounding factor3, because magnetars ever, Sharma et al. also observed that these
rigid and soft non-axial shapes. The presence are young and highly energetic. On page 61, bursts are more likely to come from massive
of a static non-axial deformation has, in fact, Sharma et al.4 report a survey of the environ- galaxies with a large number of stars, despite
been convincingly demonstrated5,6 in only one ments of galaxies from which FRBs originate such galaxies being relatively rare in the Uni-
atomic nucleus. — and the results suggest that these fascinating verse (Fig. 1). By contrast, smaller galaxies,
A fresh solution to this problem therefore flashes might come from magnetars that are which are much more common, produce, on
presents an exciting path forwards, and the created in unconventional ways. average, fewer bursts than expected on the
STAR Collaboration’s method also has the
potential to answer other questions about
atomic nuclei. Given that thousands of particles 0.8 Fast radio bursts
are produced in each collision, the approach Core-collapse supernovae
Star-forming galaxies
could be used to investigate correlations that
are more complex than those resulting from 0.6
rigid ellipsoidal shapes, providing information
on nuclear fluctuations and on shapes that are
Probability

more complicated than uranium-238’s kiwi- 0.4

fruit form. Such data will be crucial for refining
models of nuclear structure.
0.2
Magda Zielińska is in the Institute of Research
into the Fundamental Laws of the Universe,
French Alternative Energies and Atomic
0
Energy Commission, Paris-Saclay University, 107 108 109 1010 1011
91191 Gif-sur-Yvette, France. Paul E. Garrett Stellar mass (M☼)
is in the Department of Physics, University of
Guelph, Guelph, Ontario N1G 2W1, Canada.
e-mails: [email protected]; Figure 1 | Comparing the host galaxies of fast radio bursts and core-collapse supernovae. Fast radio
bursts (FRBs) are cosmological bursts of radio waves with uncertain origins. Observations suggest that
[email protected]
their progenitors could be magnetars, which are young objects that are thought to originate mainly from
explosive star deaths known as core-collapse supernovae. Sharma et al.4 computed the probability of finding
1. Heyde, K. & Wood, J. L. Phys. Scripta 91, 083008 (2016).
an FRB in a galaxy of a given stellar mass (relative to the Sun’s mass, M☉) and found that the distribution
2. STAR Collaboration. Nature 635, 67–72 (2024).
3. Tsunoda, Y. & Otsuka, T. Phys. Rev. C 103, L021303 (2021). diverged from that of core-collapse supernovae, especially at low masses. The supernovae probability is
4. Otsuka, T. et al. Preprint at arXiv https://doi.org/10.48550/ consistent with the simulated distribution of the masses of galaxies weighted by their star-formation rate.
arXiv.2303.11299 (2023). The authors conclude that the different environments of the two objects might be a result of magnetars
5. Toh, Y. et al. Phys. Rev. C 87, 041304(R) (2013).
forming through mechanisms other than ‘standard’ core-collapse supernovae — for instance, after the
6. Ayangeakaa, A. D. et al. Phys. Rev. Lett. 123, 102501 (2019).
merger of a binary star system. The shaded areas represent the statistical (Poisson) error associated with the
The authors declare no competing interests. results. (Adapted from Fig. 3b of ref. 4.)

42 | Nature | Vol 635 | 7 November 2024

basis of their prevalence. able to double the number of FRBs that have number of bursts is expected to be crucial
This intriguing result can be explained by been reliably linked to their host galaxies and for uncovering the origins of these enigmatic
the galaxies’ metallicity, which is the abun- that could be used in their study. cosmic signals, as well as for enabling the use
dance of elements that are heavier than The array is currently one of the most effec- of FRBs as probes to study the properties of
hydrogen and helium. Massive galaxies typ- tive instruments for localizing a large number the Universe.
ically have higher metallicities than do their of FRBs, achieving an average of about one
smaller counterparts5. This preference for host-galaxy association per month. However, Daniele Michilli is in the MIT Kavli Institute
massive galaxies with element-rich environ- this rate is expected to rise substantially in for Astrophysics and Space Research,
ments distinguishes FRBs from other transient 2025, when upgrades to instruments such as Massachusetts Institute of Technology,
astronomical phenomena, which tend to coex- the Australian Square Kilometre Array Path- Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139, USA.
ist with young stars or occur in environments finder (ASKAP)7 and the Canadian Hydrogen e-mail: [email protected]
dominated by hydrogen and helium. Sharma Intensity Mapping Experiment (CHIME)8 come
and colleagues’ findings therefore weaken the online. These telescopes are expected to dis- 1. Lorimer, D. R., Bailes, M., McLaughlin, M. A., Narkevic, D. J.
& Crawford, F. Science 318, 777–780 (2007).
potential link between FRBs and other types cover and map the locations of multiple bursts 2. The CHIME/FRB Collaboration et al. Nature 587, 54–58
of astronomical transient4. each month, enabling much larger samples (2020).
Among the pool of astronomical transients, than those currently available for studying the 3. Kirsten, F. et al. Nature 602, 585–589 (2022).
4. Sharma, K. et al. Nature 635, 61–66 (2024).
it is particularly insightful to compare the envi- environments of FRBs, and thereby providing 5. Gallazzi, A., Charlot, S., Brinchmann, J., White, S. D. M.
ronments of FRBs with those of ‘core collapse the opportunity to validate Sharma and col- & Tremonti, C. A. Mon. Not. R. Astron. Soc. 362, 41–58
supernovae’ to better understand their origin. leagues’ results. (2005).
6. Schulze, S. et al. Astrophys. J. 255, 29 (2021).
Core-collapse supernovae are the explosive Pinpointing the location of FRBs’ host 7. Wang, Z. et al. Preprint at arXiv https://doi.org/10.48550/
deaths of massive stars, which result in the galaxies is currently the only reliable method arXiv.2409.10316 (2024).
creation of either a neutron star or a black for accurately measuring the vast distances 8. Cassanelli, T. et al. Nature Astron. https://doi.org/10.1038/
s41550-024-02357-x (2024).
hole. Most neutron stars, including magne- that these powerful flashes travel. For this
tars, are thought to form through this process. reason, the ability to precisely locate a large The author declares no competing interests.
However, Sharma and colleagues found that
FRBs and core-collapse supernovae tend to
Ancient genomics
originate from different environments.

The legacy of the wild

In particular, when the authors compared
the masses of galaxies from which FRBs and
core-collapse supernovae hail, they found that
distributions differed markedly — especially
at the low-mass end of the scale (Fig. 1). They ancestors of modern cattle
then simulated a background population of
galaxies and computed its mass distribution,
Anna Linderholm
weighted by star-formation rate. They found
that, as previously reported6, the number of Analyses of ancient DNA from aurochs — large, wild cattle
core-collapse supernovae follows the rate of that co-existed with humans for millennia — reveals how early
star formation in the Universe. Conversely,
FRBs are less numerous in low-mass galax-
humans tamed these beasts and bred them with domesticated
ies than are core-collapse supernovae. This cattle for strength and resilience. See p.136
suggests that neutron stars that result from
core-collapse supernovae might not be the
main progenitors of FRBs. According to modern legend, cow tipping environments of mixed forests and grasslands.
As an alternative, the authors propose involves pushing over an unsuspecting, Early humans hunted them and depicted them
that FRBs could originate from magnetars sleeping cow, but you wouldn’t have wanted in art2, including in cave art from the Magda-
that are formed through channels other than to try it with an aurochs (Bos primigenius). lenian period (around 17,000 to 11,000 years
core-collapse supernovae. For instance, the These large, wild cattle stood between 155 ago; Fig. 1) and as figurines, such as those
magnetars responsible for FRBs could be and 180 centimetres tall and could weigh more found at the early Neolithic archaeological
formed after the merger of stars in binary than 1,000 kilograms. Despite the aurochs’s site of Göbekli Tepe in Turkey. The domesti-
systems, which are common in the Universe. massive size, humans managed to tame these cation of the aurochs was a turning point in
Magnetar formation through binary systems animals, which are the predecessors of today’s the development of agriculture and settled
could also explain the occasional appearance domesticated cattle (Bos taurus). On page 136, societies, and the genetic legacy of this spe-
of FRBs in regions with older stellar popula- Rossi et al.1 report analyses of ancient DNA cies continues to shape the traits of modern
tions, because binary star systems can have from the skeletal remains of 38 aurochs from cattle, influencing their size, strength and
considerably longer lifespans than those of across Eurasia, shedding light on when and adaptability.
isolated magnetars. how humans domesticated these animals. Aurochs first appeared in Europe about
Knowing the precise location of FRBs in the Although aurochs are now extinct, their 650,000 years ago3, but unlike the ancient
sky is crucial for identifying the host galaxies descendants, modern domesticated cattle, human ancestor (Homo heidelbergensis)
in which they originated. Despite thousands make up a large part of Earth’s mammalian that lived in Europe around that time, whose
of FRBs reaching Earth each day — and hun- biomass, and their domestication marks a genetic legacy can be seen in Neanderthals
dreds having been detected — discovering a milestone in human history. (Homo neanderthalensis) and modern humans
large sample of bursts and measuring their Before going extinct in the seventeenth cen- (Homo sapiens), Rossi and colleagues’s find-
positions with sufficient precision to pinpoint tury, aurochs roamed Europe, Asia and North ings suggest that early aurochs populations
their host galaxies remains a challenge. By Africa. For thousands of years, humans lived left little genetic imprint on today’s cattle.
using DSA-110, Sharma and colleagues were alongside these animals, inhabiting similar Instead, the aurochs that influenced the

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