Uncovering a Millisecond Pulsar With the Green Bank Telescope
The Green Bank Telescope (GBT) at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NRAO) has made a remarkable discovery - a millisecond pulsar! This is the first millisecond pulsar to be discovered using the GBT, and it is providing astronomers with valuable insight into the properties of the most rapidly spinning neutron stars known. The findings, published in The Astrophysical Journal Letters, have important implications for our understanding of the evolution of these stars.
The GBT has just discovered its first millisecond pulsar! This neutron star, located in the constellation Aquila, is spinning at an incredible rate of 707 times per second. This is the fastest rotation rate ever detected from a pulsar, and it’s providing astronomers with important new insights into the evolution of these stars. The research team was able to measure the mass, radius, and magnetic field strength of the pulsar, as well as its spin-down rate and its orbital period. These results are helping to improve our understanding of these unique objects, and may even shed light on the mysterious origins of the millisecond pulsar population.
source: Phys.org