Pulsar
PSR B1925+22 (J1927+2234)
Radio pulsar
A neutron star spinning once every 1.43 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 | Vulpecula |
| Period | 1.431 s |
| Period derivative | 7.7×10⁻¹⁶ s/s |
| Characteristic age | 29 million years |
| Magnetic field | 1.1×10¹² G |
| Spin-down luminosity | 1.0×10³¹ erg/s |
| Dispersion measure | 186.5 pc/cm³ |
| Distance | 6,711 pc (21.9 thousand ly) |
| Discovery | 1975 · ar1, ar3, gbncc, fast_gpps |
| Source | ATNF Pulsar Catalogue |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 19h 27m 08.1s |
| Declination (J2000) | +22° 34′ 57″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 67° S. North of latitude 67° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in July, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out 22 thousand years ago. At that time Homo sapiens was spreading out of Africa; there was no farming yet. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 388 million years.