Pulsar
PSR J0212+5321
Millisecond pulsar · binary system
A millisecond pulsar spinning 473 times per second: an old neutron star spun up again (“recycled”) by matter transferred from a companion. It shares a 20.87 h orbit with a helium white dwarf. Period, spin-down, distance and orbit come from the ATNF Pulsar Catalogue; the beam geometry is illustrative.
| Type | Pulsar |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Perseus |
| Period | 2.115 ms (473 Hz) |
| Dispersion measure | 25.7 pc/cm³ |
| Distance | 862 pc (2.8 thousand ly) |
| Companion | helium white dwarf (estimated), ~0.40 M☉ |
| Orbital period | 20.87 h |
| Discovery | 2023 · misc |
| Source | ATNF Pulsar Catalogue |
| Right ascension (J2000) | 2h 12m 10.5s |
| Declination (J2000) | +53° 21′ 39″ |
In the sky
Visible from the whole Northern Hemisphere and south to latitude 37° S. North of latitude 37° N it never sets. It stands highest at midnight in October, the best time to observe it.
Through a telescope from Earth
Light's journey
The light you see tonight set out around 786 BC. At the speed of Voyager 1, the fastest craft leaving the Solar System (16.9 km per second), the trip would take 50 million years.