Pulsar
PSR B2016+28 (J2018+2839)
Radio pulsar
A neutron star spinning once every 0.558 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 | 558.0 ms |
| Period derivative | 1.5×10⁻¹⁶ s/s |
| Characteristic age | 60 million years |
| Magnetic field | 2.9×10¹¹ G |
| Spin-down luminosity | 3.4×10³¹ erg/s |
| Dispersion measure | 14.2 pc/cm³ |
| Distance | 980 pc (3.2 thousand ly) |
| Discovery | 1968 · misc, ar327, gb1, gb3, gb4, jb1, lotaas, fast_gpps |
| Source | ATNF Pulsar Catalogue |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 20h 18m 03.8s |
| Declination (J2000) | +28° 39′ 54″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 61° S. North of latitude 61° 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 around 1171 BC. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 57 million years.