Pulsars

What is a Pulsar?

The collapsed core of a massive star which is highly magnetic and rotating very quickly. They emit pulses of radiation which sweep across the sky and are detected as pulses. Pulsars fall into two main categories according to the wavelengh they radiate:

Radio: Powered by their rotating magnetic field. The pulses have very regular periods, so if we observe some shift in this then the pulsar is moving – being dragged around by a planet.

X-ray: Powered by material they drag off a companion star. These have rotation rates that are less well understood.

Left:A diagram of a pulsar surrounded by white lines representing the magnetic field it produces. The two jets of radiation project outwards. Image credit: Roy Smits

Fun facts:

When the pulses were first discovered some scientists thought they might be coming from an alien civilization.

A mug of the material making up a pulsar can weigh up to the same amount as mount Everest!

I want to observe a Pulsar!
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