radiopulsars

Radiopulsars are highly magnetized, rotating neutron stars that emit beams of electromagnetic radiation from their magnetic poles. These emissions are observed as pulses of radio waves, X-rays, and gamma rays as the star rotates and its beam sweeps across Earth. The discovery of pulsars by Jocelyn Bell Burnell in 1967 was a significant event in astrophysics.

Neutron stars are the collapsed cores of massive stars that have exploded as supernovae. They are incredibly dense, with a mass greater than that of the Sun packed into a sphere only about 20 kilometers in diameter. Their rapid rotation and strong magnetic fields are a consequence of the conservation of angular momentum and magnetic flux during the stellar collapse.

The pulses from a radiopulsaar are extremely regular, with periods ranging from milliseconds to seconds. This regularity allows astronomers to use them as precise cosmic clocks. Studying pulsars has provided valuable insights into fundamental physics, including testing general relativity, understanding matter under extreme densities, and measuring the distribution of matter in the Milky Way galaxy. Some pulsars are found in binary systems, which can lead to phenomena like gravitational waves and provide even more opportunities for precise measurements.