Discovery of Millisecond Pulsars in the Globular Cluster Omega Centauri

被引：28

作者：

Dai, Shi ^{[1
]}

Johnston, Simon ^{[1
]}

Kerr, Matthew ^{[2
]}

Camilo, Fernando ^{[3
]}

Cameron, Andrew ^{[1
]}

Toomey, Lawrence ^{[1
]}

Kumamoto, Hiroki ^{[1
,4
]}

机构：

[1] CSIRO Astron & Space Sci, Australia Telescope Natl Facil, Epping, NSW 1710, Australia

[2] Naval Res Lab, Div Space Sci, Washington, DC 20375 USA

[3] South African Radio Astron Observ, ZA-7925 Observatory, South Africa

[4] Kumamoto Univ, Grad Sch Sci & Technol, Kumamoto, Japan

来源：

ASTROPHYSICAL JOURNAL LETTERS | 2020年 / 888卷 / 02期

关键词：

Neutron stars; Radio pulsars; Millisecond pulsars; Globular star clusters; MASS BLACK-HOLE; LONG-TERM OBSERVATIONS; 47; TUCANAE; LIMITS; I;

D O I：

10.3847/2041-8213/ab621a

中图分类号：

P1 [天文学];

学科分类号：

0704 ;

摘要：

The globular cluster Omega Centauri is the most massive and luminous cluster in the Galaxy. The gamma-ray source FL8Y J1326.7-4729 is coincident with the core of the cluster, leading to speculation that hitherto unknown radio pulsars or annihilating dark matter may be present in the cluster core. Here we report on the discovery of five millisecond pulsars (MSPs) in Omega Centauri following observations with the Parkes radio telescope. Four of these pulsars are isolated with spin periods of 4.1, 4.2, 4.6, and 6.8 ms. The fifth has a spin period of 4.8 ms and is in an eclipsing binary system with an orbital period of 2.1 hr. Deep radio continuum images of the cluster center with the Australian Telescope Compact Array reveal a small population of compact radio sources, making it likely that other pulsars await discovery. We consider it highly likely that the MSPs are the source of the gamma-ray emission. The long-term timing of these pulsars opens up opportunities to explore the dynamics and interstellar medium of the cluster.

引用

页数：6