Pulsar
PSR B2310+42 (J2313+4253)
Radio pulsar
A neutron star spinning once every 0.349 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 | Andromeda |
| Period | 349.4 ms |
| Period derivative | 1.1×10⁻¹⁶ s/s |
| Characteristic age | 49 million years |
| Magnetic field | 2.0×10¹¹ G |
| Spin-down luminosity | 1.0×10³² erg/s |
| Dispersion measure | 17.3 pc/cm³ |
| Distance | 1,060 pc (3.5 thousand ly) |
| Discovery | 1978 · gb1, gb2, gb4, gbncc, lotaas |
| Source | ATNF Pulsar Catalogue |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 23h 13m 08.6s |
| Declination (J2000) | +42° 53′ 13″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 47° S. North of latitude 47° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in September, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out around 1432 BC. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 61 million years.