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'Star Trek: Discovery' Season 3 Episode 6: Did Burnham cause the Burn? Fan theory sparks intense speculation

Ever since the beginning of Season 3, we're been hearing about the Burn

Ever since the premiere of Season 3, we've been trying to understand the origins of the Burn, along with Michael Burnham (Sonequa Martin-Green). In the first episode, Book (David Ajala) explains to her what exactly it was. "The Burn was the day the galaxy took a hard left. Dilithium, most of it just went boom…The Federation couldn’t say what happened or if it would happen again… they tried to hang on..but after a while, they just weren’t around anymore." The Burn culminated in the destruction of thousands of starships and killed everyone aboard. Even the starbases and outposts suffered severe damage. Due to the lack of warp-capable starships and means of long-range communications, the Federation broke apart.

Dilithium is at the heart of every warp-capable ship.  Apparently, the Burn created a scarcity of dilithium and everyone was worried about using it. Hence, traveling in a post-Burn world is even more dangerous. However, dilithium is the only way ships can travel and that explains why Book was so eager to find it. The question that arises is, WHY did the Burn happen and what prompted it?

Burnham learned that a century before the Burn, the galaxy's dilithium was already in short supply. Apparently, 700 years after their jump into the future, dilithium supplies dried up. So, was it a natural disaster or an unnatural event that led to a shortage of dilithium? The Federation tried to invent alternative warp designs but nothing was reliable. There was no alternative for dilithium. 

Burnham says that "Devastation flashed in an instant across all known space." However, Paul Stamets (Anthony Rapp) argues, "That's impossible. Nothing could affect all dilithium all at once." So, what rendered every piece of dilithium inert everywhere at the exact same time? 

It's highly probably that the Burn could not be natural and was man-made or accelerated by someone. The latest theory that a fan put up on Twitter that has some merit is that could Burnham somehow be responsible for the burn? Well, considering it is her show, you never know.

"Since everything in #StarTrekDiscovery revolves around Burnham, I imagine "The Burn" is her nickname and the event is named after her," a fan tweeted. "I'm enjoying season 3 quite a bit, but if Burnham turns out to be responsible for the Burn, or she single-handedly fixes it, I will be sorely disappointed. #StarTrekDiscovery," another wrote.

Even as a month ago, people were speculating on Burnham's role saying: "Waiting for Star Trek: Discovery to put all the crew into a room and go "So, the Burn? Michael's fault, right?" "Why do you think that?" "I don't know, Michael *Burnham*. Maybe you had downtime between your last catastrophes." While another fan recently stated: "Star Trek Discovery theory: Maybe Burnham's suit she sent back into the wormhole, dropped back in time and causes The Burn.  There. I've said it. I can stop reading trek fan theory sites and go about my day."

These wild theories are quite possible. 

'Star Trek: Discovery' airs on CBS-All Access, Thursdays.