How do FRB sources arise in old stellar populations?
In plain words
Some bursts come from a globular cluster (a ball of stars about $10^{10}\,\mathrm{years}$ old) or from galaxies that stopped forming stars long ago, where newborn magnetars should be absent.
Precise statement
FRB 20200120E lies in a globular cluster of M81 and other FRBs localize to quiescent galaxies. Determine the formation channel of the active sources there (accretion-induced collapse of white dwarfs, white-dwarf or neutron-star mergers, accreting compact binaries) and its rate per unit stellar mass. Answer: a channel whose rate matches the observed fraction of FRBs in old hosts.
What would settle it
Precise localizations of a statistical sample of FRBs in old environments, with the rate per stellar mass compared to channel predictions.
Status in the literature
Unverified note: it names recent work and was partly written without a live literature search; it awaits a check by an editor.
2025: the repeating source FRB 20240209A was localized to the outskirts of a quiescent elliptical galaxy.
Parent problems
- Special case of Which astrophysical objects produce fast radio bursts? · open · from revision 1 The parent was revised since revision 1: it now states another question.
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