Oddly bright burst may mean space is more transparent than we thought

The unexpectedly powerful light from the brightest space explosion ever seen may mean that space is more transparent than we thought.

Last year, astronomers witnessed a flash of gamma rays that was brighter than anything they had previously measured. By comparing it with other gamma ray bursts, researchers estimated that such a bright event would happen only once every 10,000 years.

This flash, called GRB221009A, was made of up of photons, or light particles, some of which had…