Brightest-ever gamma ray burst (the “BOAT”) continues to puzzle astronomers

On October 9, 2022, Swift’s X-Ray Telescope captured the afterglow of the brightest gamma-ray burst ever recorded, called GRB 221009A.

On the morning of October 9, 2022, multiple space-based detectors picked up a powerful gamma-ray burst (GRB) passing through our Solar System, sending astronomers around the world scrambling to train their telescopes on that part of the sky to collect vital data on the event and its aftermath.