Pulsar
PSR B0917+63 (J0921+6254)
Radio pulsar
A neutron star spinning once every 1.57 seconds; the beams from its magnetic poles sweep across Earth on every turn. Period, spin-down, distance and orbit come from the ATNF Pulsar Catalogue; the beam geometry is illustrative.
| Type | Pulsar |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Ursa Major |
| Period | 1.568 s |
| Period derivative | 3.6×10⁻¹⁵ s/s |
| Characteristic age | 6.9 million years |
| Magnetic field | 2.4×10¹² G |
| Spin-down luminosity | 3.7×10³¹ erg/s |
| Dispersion measure | 13.2 pc/cm³ |
| Distance | 1,003 pc (3.3 thousand ly) |
| Discovery | 1985 · gb2, gb4, lotaas |
| Source | ATNF Pulsar Catalogue |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 9h 21m 14.1s |
| Declination (J2000) | +62° 54′ 14″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 27° S. North of latitude 27° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in February, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out around 1246 BC. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 58 million years.