Texas scientists have spotted a massive explosion in space that dates back 12 billion years, almost to the time of the Big Bang, according to Southern Methodist University in Dallas.

NASA satellites recorded the burst and signalled back to the McDonald Observatory in West Texas.  Telescope pictures showed a gamma ray burst, believed to be the collapse of a star.

"Gamma-ray bursts are the most powerful explosions in the universe since the Big Bang," said graduate student Farley Ferrante, who was monitoring the telescope. "These bursts release more energy in 10 seconds than our Earth's sun during its entire expected lifespan of 10 billion years."

The scientists said explosions like this are key to understanding the development of the universe.

"Twelve billion years ago, it was a very different universe," said Robert Kehoe, physics professor and leader of the SMU astronomy team. "It was just hydrogen and helium. There were no rocks, there was no matter; our solar system had not formed."

Kehoe says explosions like the one shown in the photo are stars exploding, scattering new elements like carbon, oxygen, silicon and iron into the surrounding area.

"They provide material that contributes the beginning of star systems like our solar system," said Kehoe. "It's not just about 'Wow, this is a huge explosion,' there's also a personal side to it.  It is where we come from."

The scientists measure the age of the explosion by analysing the wavelength of the light picked up by the telescope.  At one point, gamma ray bursts were being picked up once a day.  Current satellites see one or two a month but in higher quality, according to SMU.

"You're looking at things a long time ago in the universe, you can get a sense for the movie of the universe," said Kehoe. "It's the evolution of the universe."