ORCs: The Cosmic Mystery Baffling Astronomers

Quick Summary

• Astronomers identified a new class of celestial objects called Odd Radio Circles (ORCs) in 2019 during a survey with the Australian Square Kilometer Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) telescope in Western Australia.
• ORCs are circular,large structures visible only in radio wavelengths,with some spanning up to two million light-years across. Their mechanisms of formation remain largely uncertain.
• Early findings connect ORC 1 to an elliptical galaxy located five billion light-years away, while other observed ORCs display unusual variations-for example, differing brightness levels and shapes or proximity to peculiar locations like the Large Magellanic Cloud.
• Potential explanations for their formation include supermassive black hole activity or collisions between galaxy groups leading to expanding gas structures mimicking spherical shapes. Other theories propose supernova remnants as drivers for specific types of smaller ORCs near Earth’s cosmic vicinity.
• Scientists suggest that orcs may represent diverse physical phenomena under one broad category, requiring further observations and studies for proper classification and clarification.

!read More