tags: astronomy neutron star

Pulsars are highly magnetized rotating neutron stars which emit a beam
of detectable electromagnetic radiation in the form of radio waves.
Their observed periods range from 1.5 ms to 8.5 s. The radiation can
only be observed when the beam of emission is pointing towards the
Earth. This is called the lighthouse effect and gives rise to the
pulsed nature that gives pulsars their name. Because neutron stars are
very dense objects, the rotation period and thus the interval between
observed pulses are very regular. For some pulsars, the regularity of
pulsation is as precise as an atomic clock. Pulsars are known to have
planets orbiting them, as in the case of PSR B1257+12. Werner Becker
of the Max-Planck-Institut fur extraterrestrische Physik said in 2006,
"The theory of how pulsars emit their radiation is still in its
infancy, even after nearly forty years of work."