Astronomers were able to capture the blinding flash of light that occurred when Supernova Remnant (or SNR as it's called) 0509-67.5 collapsed some 160,000 years ago. The flash of light was actually "echoing" off space dust approximately 400 light years away from the SNR's ground zero.

It turns out that from that point onwards, the echoes were steered our way, and now scientists believe that further investigations might even help them peer into the past.

"We have a chance here to see the supernova in both the past and the present," said Armin Rest, an astronomer from Harvard University. Yes, past and present - like he said. It's sure to jostle your brains a bit, but here's the skinny: You see, the flash that the scientists recorded was simply an echo, which meant an original flash arrived on Earth some time earlier.

Physics would say that the first light flash arrived on Earth approximately 400 years ago - the direct flash from SNR 0509-76.5's explosion could be readily observable here on Earth. So more or less, we're seeing the same flash as the early humans may have seen four centuries ago - only this time, it's just 400 years later.

Couple with the fact that the flash of light began its journey 160,000 years ago (the dead star's remains is 160,000 light years away) and you're sure to be strumming your lips for a while in utter confusion.

"We can see light from the blast bouncing off of dust, and we can also see the supernova remnants. It's kind of like having a time machine," explained Rest. Now who would've thunk?

But part of the scientific explanation is understandable: the light that they've observed just recently was originally an indirect flash of light pointed elsewhere instead of Earth. Thanks to specks of dust in the way, some of those light particles are now heading to our homeworld.

They've been spotted with the help of three observatories: NASA's Chandra X-ray, XMM-Newton, and the Gemini observatories.

Images courtesy of Greg Martin ("Maelstrom II") and David A. Hardy.