There and gone in a cosmological flash. Astronomers report on 72 bright, quick events found in a recent survey. They're like supernovae, but flash into view, then disappear again much faster.
Astronomers call it Lensed Star 1 because gravitational microlensing magnified its light some 2,000 times. That's how they saw it shining from the distant past, only 4.4 billion years after the Big Bang.
The star is a rare yellow supergiant. It's speeding across its little galaxy fast enough to travel from Los Angeles to New York in about half a minute.