Originally discovered by the Fermi Gamma Ray Space Telescope in 2009, Pulsar PSR J0357 had a bit of a surprise for astronomers when NASA’s Chandra X-ray Observatory turned an eye its way. Even though it might be 1,600 light years from Earth and half a million years old, it would appear this object has a cosmic sense of humor. Stretching across 4.2 light years is an enormous tail…
Viewable only at X-ray wavelengths, this incredible cosmic contrail is the longest ever associated with a so-called “rotation- powered” pulsar. Unlike other pulsars, J0357 gets its power from energy depletion as the spin rate decreases. But where did the plumage come from? According to the Chandra data, it may be an emission from energetic particles in the pulsar wind produced while turning around magnetic field lines. While artifacts of this type have been noted before, they’re classed as bow-shocks generated by the supersonic motion of pulsars through space. From there, the wind pulls the particles along behind it as the pulsar passes through interstellar gas.
But Pulsar PSR J0357 isn’t exactly fitting into a neat a tidy category…
According to data taken from Fermi, J0357 is only losing a small amount of energy as its spin rate slows. This means it shouldn’t be producing a particle wind of such proportions. Another anachronism is the placement of the bright portions of the tail – not anywhere near where bow-shocks are associated with pulsars.
“Further observations with Chandra could help test this bow-shock interpretation.” says the Chandra team. “If the pulsar is seen moving in the opposite direction from that of the tail, this would support the bow-shock idea.”
Original News Source: Chandra News.
Last November, NASA's Lucy mission conducted a flyby of the asteroid Dinkinish, one of the…
Steven Hawking famously calculated that black holes should evaporate, converting into particles and energy over…
NASA has given the go-ahead for SpaceX to work out a plan to adapt its…
The JWST is astronomers' best tool for probing exoplanet atmospheres. Its capable instruments can dissect…
First light for the Vera Rubin Observatory (VRO) is quickly approaching and the telescope is…
A beautiful nebula in the southern hemisphere with a binary star at it's center seems…