Scientists have detected a phenomenally powerful outburst of cosmic radiation - known as a gamma-ray burst - which likely occured when an enormous star died and transformed into an all-consuming black hole.

Gamma Ray Bursts (GRBs) are among the most energetic cosmic explosions to light up the cosmos since the Big Bang event that is thought to have created it. Astronomers believe that the majority of GRBs take place when a truly massive star collapses inward at the end of its life, having run out of the materials needed to maintain the nuclear fusion reaction at its core.

This spectacular implosion heralds the birth of a black hole, during which the newly formed singularity blasts out jets of gamma radiation that, travelling at close to the speed of light, can shine a million trillion times (yes, a million trillion) brighter than the Sun. An outpouring of X-ray radiation is also released as the fast moving jets collide with the clouds of gas cast off by the dead star.

On Sunday, October 9, detectors aboard NASA’s fleet of orbital spacecraft were triggered when a powerful wave of gamma rays and X-rays flooded through the solar system, signalling the occurrence of an extraordinarily powerful gamma-ray burst.

Following the initial detection of the event - which has been designated GRB 221009A - astronomers across the globe raced to train a multitude of the world's most powerful telescopes on the aftermath of the explosion. A range of orbital spacecraft also joined the effort, including NASA’s Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope and the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory.

Together, the keen robotic eyes were able to capture the evolving light signature of the explosion over optical, infrared, gamma, and X-ray wavelengths. The signal originated roughly 2.4 billion light-years from Earth in the direction of the constellation Sagitta, and lasted for a few hundred seconds. According to these early observations, GRB 221009A is the brightest GRB to ever be recorded since the advent of modern science, potentially by as much as a factor of 10.

“Given that most other long GRBs result from a massive star collapsing, we have every reason to believe that we will find direct evidence of a supernova,” explains Ph.D. student Jillian Rastinejad of Northwestern University, Illinois, who helped image the event. “But that will take more work and time to confirm, and the universe could always surprise us.”

However, there is a clock on the scientific community’s observations of GRB 221009A - as in a little over a month the gamma-ray source will be temporarily shrouded by the glare from our Sun.

When it becomes visible once more early next year, astronomers will get back to work unravelling the secrets as to how such a powerful explosion of light came to be.

Stay tuned to IGN’s science page to keep up to date with the weird world of science.

Anthony Wood is a freelance science writer for IGN

Warner Bros. Discovery is releasing an NFT bundle for The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring that includes the 4K version of the film and several collectible assets.

As reported by Variety, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has partnered with blockchain company Eluvio to launch The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Web3 Movie Experience — an NFT bundle that includes the extended version of the 2001 film in 4K UHD, over eight hours of special features, image galleries, and hidden AR collectibles.

The Fellowship of the Ring NFTs will launch on October 21, with a "Mystery Edition" priced at $30 and an "Epic Edition" available for $100. The more expensive option features navigation menus for The Shire, Rivendell, and Mines of Moria (as opposed to the "surprise" one offered in the mystery package) along with location-specific key art and extra image galleries.

The Fellowship of the Ring Web3 Movie Experience marks the first time a major studio has released a movie as an NFT, but it's unlikely to be the last. Warner Bros. has set up a website for its WB Movieverse venture and reportedly plans to build out its NFT marketplace with other titles that will presumably appear in those "coming soon" slots on the homepage.

Warner Bros. Entertainment's EVP and General Manager Jessica Schell described Peter Jackson's debut Lord of the Rings film as an "evergreen" title with a passionate fanbase. She said they wanted to make the NFTs available to fans while offering some level of "scarcity and exclusivity," so have minted 999 copies of the Epic Edition and 10,000 of the Mystery Edition.

NFTs and cryptocurrencies have seen a massive wave of attention in the tech space in the last year, and continue to be controversial subjects. They are largely unregulated entities often exploited for scam purposes and have been accused of having a huge negative impact on the environment due to the energy consumed during the electronic mining of currency.

The NFT drop for The Fellowship of the Ring comes amid Prime Video's release of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. The much-anticipated series has just wrapped its first season. IGN called it "a strong successor to Peter Jackson's beloved Lord of the Rings trilogy" filled with "some of the most remarkable sets and scenes ever on TV."

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

Warner Bros. Discovery is releasing an NFT bundle for The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring that includes the 4K version of the film and several collectible assets.

As reported by Variety, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has partnered with blockchain company Eluvio to launch The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring Web3 Movie Experience — an NFT bundle that includes the extended version of the 2001 film in 4K UHD, over eight hours of special features, image galleries, and hidden AR collectibles.

The Fellowship of the Ring NFTs will launch on October 21, with a "Mystery Edition" priced at $30 and an "Epic Edition" available for $100. The more expensive option features navigation menus for The Shire, Rivendell, and Mines of Moria (as opposed to the "surprise" one offered in the mystery package) along with location-specific key art and extra image galleries.

The Fellowship of the Ring Web3 Movie Experience marks the first time a major studio has released a movie as an NFT, but it's unlikely to be the last. Warner Bros. has set up a website for its WB Movieverse venture and reportedly plans to build out its NFT marketplace with other titles that will presumably appear in those "coming soon" slots on the homepage.

Warner Bros. Entertainment's EVP and General Manager Jessica Schell described Peter Jackson's debut Lord of the Rings film as an "evergreen" title with a passionate fanbase. She said they wanted to make the NFTs available to fans while offering some level of "scarcity and exclusivity," so have minted 999 copies of the Epic Edition and 10,000 of the Mystery Edition.

NFTs and cryptocurrencies have seen a massive wave of attention in the tech space in the last year, and continue to be controversial subjects. They are largely unregulated entities often exploited for scam purposes and have been accused of having a huge negative impact on the environment due to the energy consumed during the electronic mining of currency.

The NFT drop for The Fellowship of the Ring comes amid Prime Video's release of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power. The much-anticipated series has just wrapped its first season. IGN called it "a strong successor to Peter Jackson's beloved Lord of the Rings trilogy" filled with "some of the most remarkable sets and scenes ever on TV."

Adele Ankers-Range is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow her on Twitter.

A new Final Fantasy XVI trailer has arrived, shedding more light on a world that in some ways resembles an even more fantastic version of Ivalice — the realm popularized by Final Fantasy Tactics and Final Fantasy XII.

As revealed in the new trailer, the land of Valisthea is evidently dying as its crystals slowly fade. A voiceover intones, “Darkness spreads as day gives way to twilight, the mother’s flame now all but a flicker. We cannot live without the blessing of the crystals.”

Crystals are a famous part of Final Fantasy's lore going back to the original game. While they haven't been in every single Final Fantasy game, they're generally included as a more nostalgic element in the series. Their inclusion in Final Fantasy XVI suggests that Square Enix is intent on honing in on iconic imagery from the franchise despite differences like the action-oriented combat.

The trailer goes on to highlight the various kingdoms, each with its own theme: The Grand Duchy of Rosaria, “a bastion of tradition”; the Holy Empire of Sanbreque, “where ambition is divine”; the Dhalmekian Republic, “where fortune shifts with the desert sands”; The Iron Kingdom, “forged in faith and fear”; and the Kingdom of Waloed, “indomitable in its isolation.”

As previously revealed by Square Enix, each kingdom has its own summon, or “Eikon.” Rosaria’s Eikon is Phoenix, while the Eikons of several of the other kingdoms have yet to be revealed. The trailer hints at a major war between the various kingdoms as they battle to “claim the fading light” of the crystals.

Both Clive and Joshua make appearances in the trailer, with Joshua once again shown summoning Phoenix, and Clive exploring something called “the Deadlands” with several other party members As in the previous trailer, Eikons play a major role. Aside from Ifrit, a mysterious tapestry featuring a multitude of summons is glimpsed at the end of the trailer, which ought to give knowledgeable Final Fantasy fans an idea of what to expect going forward.

Final Fantasy's Crystals Reborn

First revealed back in 2020, Final Fantasy XVI is the latest entry in the long-running series encompassing dozens of mainline entries and spin-offs. Unlike more recent entries, which have a somewhat futuristic bent, Final Fantasy XVI is more medieval. It is produced by Naoki Yoshida, who has found great success as the director of Final Fantasy XIV.

IGN interviewed Yoshida about Final Fantasy XVI back in June, where he revealed new details on Eikons, party members, and why it won’t be a “Final Fantasy theme park.” We also learned that the puppy in the original trailer has a name, and that it won't be open world.

Final Fantasy XVI is currently in development for PlayStation 5 as a timed exclusive. It is also expected to be released on PC, but Square Enix has not yet confirmed an official release. It is currently slated for release in summer 2023.

Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN as well as co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.

A new Final Fantasy XVI trailer has arrived, shedding more light on a world that in some ways resembles an even more fantastic version of Ivalice — the realm popularized by Final Fantasy Tactics and Final Fantasy XII.

As revealed in the new trailer, the land of Valisthea is evidently dying as its crystals slowly fade. A voiceover intones, “Darkness spreads as day gives way to twilight, the mother’s flame now all but a flicker. We cannot live without the blessing of the crystals.”

Crystals are a famous part of Final Fantasy's lore going back to the original game. While they haven't been in every single Final Fantasy game, they're generally included as a more nostalgic element in the series. Their inclusion in Final Fantasy XVI suggests that Square Enix is intent on honing in on iconic imagery from the franchise despite differences like the action-oriented combat.

The trailer goes on to highlight the various kingdoms, each with its own theme: The Grand Duchy of Rosaria, “a bastion of tradition”; the Holy Empire of Sanbreque, “where ambition is divine”; the Dhalmekian Republic, “where fortune shifts with the desert sands”; The Iron Kingdom, “forged in faith and fear”; and the Kingdom of Waloed, “indomitable in its isolation.”

As previously revealed by Square Enix, each kingdom has its own summon, or “Eikon.” Rosaria’s Eikon is Phoenix, while the Eikons of several of the other kingdoms have yet to be revealed. The trailer hints at a major war between the various kingdoms as they battle to “claim the fading light” of the crystals.

Both Clive and Joshua make appearances in the trailer, with Joshua once again shown summoning Phoenix, and Clive exploring something called “the Deadlands” with several other party members As in the previous trailer, Eikons play a major role. Aside from Ifrit, a mysterious tapestry featuring a multitude of summons is glimpsed at the end of the trailer, which ought to give knowledgeable Final Fantasy fans an idea of what to expect going forward.

Final Fantasy's Crystals Reborn

First revealed back in 2020, Final Fantasy XVI is the latest entry in the long-running series encompassing dozens of mainline entries and spin-offs. Unlike more recent entries, which have a somewhat futuristic bent, Final Fantasy XVI is more medieval. It is produced by Naoki Yoshida, who has found great success as the director of Final Fantasy XIV.

IGN interviewed Yoshida about Final Fantasy XVI back in June, where he revealed new details on Eikons, party members, and why it won’t be a “Final Fantasy theme park.” We also learned that the puppy in the original trailer has a name, and that it won't be open world.

Final Fantasy XVI is currently in development for PlayStation 5 as a timed exclusive. It is also expected to be released on PC, but Square Enix has not yet confirmed an official release. It is currently slated for release in summer 2023.

Kat Bailey is a Senior News Editor at IGN as well as co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Send her a DM at @the_katbot.

Naughty Dog has said that releasing the Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection on PC is a "transformative pivot point" for the studio, indicating a bigger focus on the platform going forward.

Speaking in a blog post, Naughty Dog vice president Christian Gyrling said that, while PlayStation 5 remains the developer's primary platform, putting games on PC allows it to reach a whole new audience.

Naughty Dog used its partnership with Iron Galaxy (who ported the Uncharted collection over to PC) to learn about PC development, Gyrling said, and "we’re able to look ahead to the future of Naughty Dog games on PC more excitedly than ever."

He continued: "We’re excited to be offering The Last of Us Part 1 on PC in the future, and know that, moving forward, adding PC development to the way we develop games, which in no way undermines the importance of PlayStation 5 as our primary platform, will continue to benefit our team in the long run.

"Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection’s PC release is a transformative pivot point for Naughty Dog. We not only have another chance to celebrate our beloved franchise but also introduce it to so many new players.

"In doing so, we set the stage for Naughty Dog to deliver high-quality games on PlayStation 5, with the option of a PC release as well, with an understanding of how to cater to the different needs of both audiences now and in the future."

While this doesn't guarantee that every new Naughty Dog game will eventually be released on PC going forward, it does seem much more likely. Sony itself is doubling down on its expansion to the platform by establishing a new PlayStation PC label and purchasing PC porting specialist Nixxes.

It also recently said that, alongside investing in first party software, its other main strategy for growing its business is releasing its software on multiple platforms - and it expects to make $300 million from PC games this financial year alone.

Uncharted's arrival on PC is certainly significant given that it's arguably PlayStation's biggest franchise, but other major first party games including God of War and Spider-Man have also made the jump to huge success. Spin-off title Spider-Man: Miles Morales is also coming to PC this November, with the aforementioned Last of Us Part 1 also expected to arrive on PC in the near future as well.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.

Naughty Dog has said that releasing the Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection on PC is a "transformative pivot point" for the studio, indicating a bigger focus on the platform going forward.

Speaking in a blog post, Naughty Dog vice president Christian Gyrling said that, while PlayStation 5 remains the developer's primary platform, putting games on PC allows it to reach a whole new audience.

Naughty Dog used its partnership with Iron Galaxy (who ported the Uncharted collection over to PC) to learn about PC development, Gyrling said, and "we’re able to look ahead to the future of Naughty Dog games on PC more excitedly than ever."

He continued: "We’re excited to be offering The Last of Us Part 1 on PC in the future, and know that, moving forward, adding PC development to the way we develop games, which in no way undermines the importance of PlayStation 5 as our primary platform, will continue to benefit our team in the long run.

"Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection’s PC release is a transformative pivot point for Naughty Dog. We not only have another chance to celebrate our beloved franchise but also introduce it to so many new players.

"In doing so, we set the stage for Naughty Dog to deliver high-quality games on PlayStation 5, with the option of a PC release as well, with an understanding of how to cater to the different needs of both audiences now and in the future."

While this doesn't guarantee that every new Naughty Dog game will eventually be released on PC going forward, it does seem much more likely. Sony itself is doubling down on its expansion to the platform by establishing a new PlayStation PC label and purchasing PC porting specialist Nixxes.

It also recently said that, alongside investing in first party software, its other main strategy for growing its business is releasing its software on multiple platforms - and it expects to make $300 million from PC games this financial year alone.

Uncharted's arrival on PC is certainly significant given that it's arguably PlayStation's biggest franchise, but other major first party games including God of War and Spider-Man have also made the jump to huge success. Spin-off title Spider-Man: Miles Morales is also coming to PC this November, with the aforementioned Last of Us Part 1 also expected to arrive on PC in the near future as well.

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.

Fans hoping for more of the Cyberpunk: Edgerunners anime will be disappointed to hear that CD Projekt Red currently has no plans to create a Season 2.

In an interview with Famitsu (translated by VGC), CD Projekt Red's Japanese community manager Satoru Honma said there are no plans to continue the Studio Trigger-developed anime.

"I personally would like to continue to work with Japanese studios to produce more anime in the future, partly because we have received very good feedback," Honma said. "However, just to be clear, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners was planned as a standalone work, so there’s no such thing as ‘we are actually working on Season 2 in the background’."

That's not to say it's off the table completely, but "even if we could make more anime in the future, I don’t know if it would be Season 2 or something completely different," Honma added.

The ten episodes of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners premiered on Netflix in September and, supporting what Honma said, had a pretty definitive ending that doesn't have an obvious point of continuation.

CD Projekt Red announced during its recent investor briefing that it plans to continue expanding its games through different forms of media, however, meaning the studio might consider further animated projects in the future.

It's otherwise expanding the world of Cyberpunk 2077 through its Phantom Liberty expansion, a full sequel that's codenamed Orion, and it also recently announced an official novel called No Coincidence.

In our 9/10 review of the anime, IGN said: "Cyberpunk: Edgerunners delivers a satisfying return to Night City that does a better job exploring why Mike Pondsmith’s famous location became so iconic in the first place."

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.

Fans hoping for more of the Cyberpunk: Edgerunners anime will be disappointed to hear that CD Projekt Red currently has no plans to create a Season 2.

In an interview with Famitsu (translated by VGC), CD Projekt Red's Japanese community manager Satoru Honma said there are no plans to continue the Studio Trigger-developed anime.

"I personally would like to continue to work with Japanese studios to produce more anime in the future, partly because we have received very good feedback," Honma said. "However, just to be clear, Cyberpunk: Edgerunners was planned as a standalone work, so there’s no such thing as ‘we are actually working on Season 2 in the background’."

That's not to say it's off the table completely, but "even if we could make more anime in the future, I don’t know if it would be Season 2 or something completely different," Honma added.

The ten episodes of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners premiered on Netflix in September and, supporting what Honma said, had a pretty definitive ending that doesn't have an obvious point of continuation.

CD Projekt Red announced during its recent investor briefing that it plans to continue expanding its games through different forms of media, however, meaning the studio might consider further animated projects in the future.

It's otherwise expanding the world of Cyberpunk 2077 through its Phantom Liberty expansion, a full sequel that's codenamed Orion, and it also recently announced an official novel called No Coincidence.

In our 9/10 review of the anime, IGN said: "Cyberpunk: Edgerunners delivers a satisfying return to Night City that does a better job exploring why Mike Pondsmith’s famous location became so iconic in the first place."

Ryan Dinsdale is an IGN freelancer. He'll talk about The Witcher all day.

Daredevil star Charlie Cox says the “Save Daredevil” social media campaign helped shape the future of his career, and thanked fans for their support.

During an interview with Marvel.com, the star of Netflix’s Daredevil said that the “Save Daredevil” social media campaign played a big part in his Daredevil return.

“Whatever happens to my career going forward from this point on, I owe most of it to the ‘Save Daredevil’ campaign,” he said. “That even when I had lost hope years ago, they did not, and they continued to campaign and support. And over the years, I've met many of them, and they're such an enthusiastic, passionate crowd.”

“Daredevil is such an amazing character,” said Cox. “It's been the great honor of my career to be offered that part and to be able to play him. I've had such fun with it. It's changed my life irrevocably. And when the show came to an end, despite the disappointment of the journey ending, I felt like we'd done a good job, and we had an amazing time and we could only be grateful for what we'd had.”

After Netflix’s Daredevil was canceled back in 2018, the “Save Daredevil” campaign began almost immediately. Its aim was to show Marvel how popular Charlie Cox was as Matt Murdock / Daredevil, and ultimately, to get him back in the suit. It looks as though it worked.

Matt Murdock recently made his big screen debut in Spider-Man: No Way Home and suited up as Daredevil once more in the Disney+ show, She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. Most importantly, he’s getting his own show, too – Daredevil: Born Again.

“To be invited back and starting again, almost, it feels like a little bit like a dream,” said Cox. “It feels too good to be true. I'm so excited about the future. I can't wait to get on the set from the first day of the new show. I'm already starting to train. As you know, I'm already starting to make plans in terms of living and training and having conversations with the writers and all of those things. So, it's starting to feel very real.”

Want to read more about Daredevil? Find out why Daredevil: Born Again won’t be a continuation of the Netflix series as well as the 3 changes the MCU made to Daredevil.

Ryan Leston is an entertainment journalist and film critic for IGN. You can follow him on Twitter.