How do the universe’s most magnetic objects produce some of the most energetic outbursts we’ve seen? New observations by our IXPE telescope of a magnetar called 1E 1841-045 gave us some clues! Magnetars are a type of neutron star, the crushed remains of a massive star. These supermagnetized stellar cores sport the strongest magnetic fields known — up to 10 trillion times stronger than a refrigerator magnet. They can produce powerful X-ray outbursts. Astronomers caught an eruption from 1E 1841-04