OBSERVATIONS OF PULSARS

by Fatima Ibraheem

Neutron stars have very intense magnetic fields, about 1,000,000,000,000 times stronger than Earth's own field. However, the axis of the magnetic field is not aligned with the neutron star's rotation axis. The combination of this strong magnetic field and the rapid rotation of the neutron star produces extremely powerful electric fields, with electric potential in excess of 1,000,000,000,000 volts. Electrons are accelerated to high velocities by these strong electric fields. These high-energy electrons produce radiation (light) in two general ways:

  1. Acting as a coherent plasma, the electrons work together to produce radio emission by a process whose details remain poorly understood;
  2. Acting individually, the electrons interact with photons or the magnetic field to produce high-energy emission such as optical, X-ray and gamma-ray.

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WHAT MAKES IT PULSE?

by Fatima Ibraheem

Simply put, pulsars are rotating neutron stars. And pulsars pulse because they rotate! Pulsars pulse because the rotation of the neutron star causes the radiation generated within the magnetic field to sweep in and out of our line of sight with a regular period.

A Diagram of pulsar, showing its rotation axis and its magnetic axis

Pulsars have jets of particles moving almost at the speed of light streaming out above their magnetic poles. These jets produce very powerful beams of light. We see pulsars turn on and off as the beam sweeps over the Earth. Neutron stars for which we see such pulses are called "pulsars", indicating that the source of energy is the rotation of the neutron star.

Crab Pulsar "On"

Crab Pulsar "Off"

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PULSAR OR KNOCKER

by Fatima Ibraheem
Pulsars are highlymagnetized rotating neutron stars which emit a beam of detectable electromagnetic radiation in the form of radio waves,that sweep through the earth's line of sight.

A diagram of a pulsar showing its rotation axis,
its magnetic axis, and its magnetic field.
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LITTLE GREEN MEN OF THE UNIVERSE

by Fatima Ibraheem

In 1967 Jocellyn Bell accidentally stumbled on a gravity time warp a million times greater than that produced by the sun. The object she detected was emitting regular pulses. These pulses were reminiscent of heart-beats. At the time, such a pulsating object was not known to exist in space. At first, it was concluded that these signals might well have been propagated by intelligent beings, inhabitants of other planets.

LGM (Little Green Men):
The stereotypical interpretation of extraterrestrial as little humanoid – like creatures with green skin and antennae on their head.

Extraterrestrial Life is life originating outside of the earth. This is the subject of astrobiology and its existence remains hypothetical. This hypothesis According to Martin Rees,
the hypothesis that pulsars were beacons from extraterrestrial civilizations was never taken very seriously. Invitation cards were printed, the media were notified and a seminar was arranged. LGM (Little Green Men) signified that intelligent creatures had been detected and were contacted by radio signals. Not long after, the source of the signals in question was discovered: it was a spinning neutron star, an object whose velocity was incommensurably great. The neutron star had another name: “pulsar.” Bell’s discovery failed to establish contact with the inhabitants of space, but she had found pulsars. The words “pulsar” and “pulsating” seem to accord with the word Tariq of the Quran, which means “knocker.”

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