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Astrophysicists Discover Record-Breaking Gigamaser from Distant Galaxy

3/6/2026

Summary

Story summary

Astrophysicists have discovered the brightest gigamaser from a galaxy merger about 8 billion light-years away, using MeerKAT in South Africa.
The powerful microwaves originate from HATLAS J142935.3–002836 and were amplified by gravitational lensing.
The finding surpasses records and shows gravitational interactions compress gas to drive star formation.
Researchers plan to study more similar systems, and the study will be published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Letters.

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Story summary

Astrophysicists have discovered the brightest gigamaser from a galaxy merger about 8 billion light-years away, using MeerKAT in South Africa.
The powerful microwaves originate from HATLAS J142935.3–002836 and were amplified by gravitational lensing.
The finding surpasses records and shows gravitational interactions compress gas to drive star formation.
Researchers plan to study more similar systems, and the study will be published in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society Letters.