[djsumdog]

I remember learning about this. I wonder if Earth was enveloped in such a burst, if we'd go out quickly, peacefully, like a heart attack in our sleep. Most life wiped out on our planet in an instant. It makes you wonder how many world out there contain the empty structures of civilizations that went out in an instant, with a whisper.

[bugs_bunny]

It wouldn't be quick, and it would be ugly, as explained in...

https://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2009/04/090403-gamm...

and

https://astrobiology.nasa.gov/news/how-deadly-would-a-nearby...

BUT, such events are (apparently) every billion years or so...

[danielbarla]

I think that on average, there's a GRB close enough to us to matter once every billion years or so. However, it'd still need to be aligned perfectly to hit us, making the actual extinction event far less likely.

[stjohnswarts]

I just hope we can even find a xeno microbe to put another nail in the coffin of organized religion.