The Maria Mitchell Observatory is part of the Fast and Fortunate for FRB Follow-up (F⁴) collaboration. This team of students, post-docs, and faculty from around the world works together to perform multi-wavelength follow-up studies of fast radio bursts (FRBs) and their host galaxies with the goal of learning more about the progenitors of FRBs, the properties of galaxy halos, and the cosmic web material between galaxies. 

Fast radio bursts are short, bright flashes of light in radio wavelengths that come from distant galaxies. Some bursts repeat while others have only been observed once, and the mechanism that produces FRBs is still unknown. By observing the galaxies that host these FRBs in more wavelengths of light (optical, ultraviolet, infrared), we can find out what elements are present and what types of processes are occurring in these galaxies, which helps narrow down the possibilities for what might produce FRBs. Even though we do not yet know what causes them, FRBs themselves are useful tools for studying the universe. As their light travels through space, it passes through the material in between the host galaxy and Earth, and by the time it gets to our telescopes some wavelengths have slowed down more than others in the same burst, giving us clues about how much matter the light encountered along the way.

For more information on the F⁴ team and their work, check out their website. The F⁴ collaboration is generously funded by the National Science Foundation under awards AST-1911140 and AST-1910471.