Intermediate luminosity optical transient

An intermediate luminosity optical transient is a type of event that happens in the universe where we see a sudden increase in brightness of an object in the optical wavelength (the light we can see with our eyes).

Imagine you have a light bulb that is normally on and shining, but suddenly the brightness of the light bulb increases by a lot. This sudden increase in brightness is what we are talking about.

Now, in space, there are many different types of objects like stars, which are really bright, and planets, which are dimmer. Sometimes, one of these objects suddenly becomes a lot brighter than it normally is, and we call this an intermediate luminosity optical transient.

Scientists are still trying to understand what causes these sudden increases in brightness, but some possible explanations include a star exploding or colliding with another object, or a black hole or neutron star suddenly emitting a burst of energy.

Intermediate luminosity optical transients are important because they give us clues about the nature of the objects in our universe and how they behave. By studying them, scientists can learn more about the processes that shape the universe we live in.