Search arXiv⌕ Search
Home/Archive/arXiv

arXiv · 1007.2940

Optical-uv spectrum and proper motion of the middle-aged pulsar b1055-52

R. P. Mignani·G. G. Pavlov·O. Kargaltsev
View original source ↗Read source document ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

PSRB1055-52 is a middle-aged (~535 kyr) radio, X-ray, and gamma-ray pulsar showing X-ray thermal emission from the neutron star (NS) surface. A candidate optical counterpart to PSRB1055-52 was proposed by Mignani and coworkers based on Hubble Space Telescope (HST) observations performed in 1996, in one spectral band only. We report on HST observations of this field carried out in 2008, in four spectral bands. The astrometric and photometric analyses of these data confirm the identification of the proposed candidate as the pulsar's optical counterpart. Similarly to other middle-aged pulsars, its optical-UV spectrum can be described by the sum of a power-law (PLO) component, presumably emitted from the pulsar magnetosphere, and a Rayleigh-Jeans (RJ) component emitted from the NS surface. The spectral index of the PLO component, alpha_O=1.05+/-0.34, is larger than for other pulsars with optical counterparts. The RJ component, with the brightness temperature TO=(0.66+/-0.10) d_350**2 R_O,13**-2 MK (where d_350 and R_O,13 are the distance to the pulsar in units of 350 pc and the radius of the emitting area in units of 13 km), shows a factor of 4 excess with respect to the extrapolation of the X-ray thermal component into the UV-optical. This hints that the RJ component is emitted from a larger, colder area, and suggests that the distance to the pulsar is smaller than previously thought. From the absolute astrometry of the HST images we measured the pulsar coordinates with a position accuracy of 0.15". From the comparison with previous observations we measured the pulsar proper motion, mu = 42+/-5 mas/yr, which corresponds to a transverse velocity V_t = (70+/-8) d_350 km/s.

Explore related subjects

astro-ph.HE

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

R. P. Mignani, G. G. Pavlov, O. Kargaltsev. 2010-07-17. Optical-uv spectrum and proper motion of the middle-aged pulsar b1055-52. https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637x%2F720%2F2%2F1635

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related papers

arXiv2026

Identifying Kilonovae in the Presence of Optical Afterglow for the Wide Field Survey Telescope

Identifying kilonovae associated with binary neutron star mergers is often complicated by the presence of a dominant synchrotron afterglow. In this work, we evaluate the performance of the Wide Field Survey Telescope (WFST) in identifying kilonova signals in composite afterglow-kilonova transients. Using a numerical framework based on the Fisher information matrix, we simulate $10,000$ realizations for each of two scenarios: an AT2017gfo-based template model and a physically sampled population that accounts for kilonova diversity. Our results indicate that kilonova identification is primarily limited by source distance. In both scenarios, the identification efficiency is largely insensitive to variations in afterglow microphysical parameters and exceeds $80\%$ at distances within approximately $600~\rm Mpc$ for AT2017gfo-like events. Under our adopted assumptions and a short gamma-ray burst (sGRB)-triggered target-of-opportunity (ToO) observational strategy, we estimate that the WFST could identify $0.1-1.2$ kilonovae per year in the optimistic scenario. Furthermore, we find that the discriminating power of color-based filters rapidly saturates, reaching a stable plateau by the second night after the merger. We therefore propose a staged observing strategy that prioritizes high-cadence $g$ and $r$-band monitoring during the first night and incorporates the $z$ band from the second night onward. This strategy improves the identification precision by exploiting the increasingly prominent red excess produced by the kilonova. Our results provide a physical basis for optimizing WFST observing resources to efficiently detect and characterize kilonovae in the multimessenger era.

astro-ph.HE↗
arXiv2026

CRAFT HTR2: Polarimetry of 64 non-repeating fast radio bursts from the updated CRAFT catalogue

We present high-time resolution spectro-polarimetric data for 34 new fast radio bursts (FRBs) discovered by the Commensal Real-time Fast Transients (CRAFT) survey on the Australian Square Kilometer Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) during the period May 2024 to June 2026. Most of these were detected by the higher-sensitivity CRAFT COherent (CRACO) detection system that was commissioned on the telescope during this period. This new sample doubles the size of the CRAFT HTR catalogue and probes a fainter population of FRBs thanks to the improved sensitivity of CRACO. We compare the distribution of extragalactic rotation measure (RM) and polarisation fraction to the CHIME and DSA catalogues. While no significant differences were seen between CRAFT and DSA, the extragalactic RM distribution seen in CHIME FRBs (which are detected at lower frequency) was substantially lower. Surprisingly, we find no significant differences in the linear polarisation fraction distribution between the three FRB catalogues, suggesting an indifference to the different telescope observing frequencies. We show tentative evidence for wider and fainter bursts possessing lower polarisation fractions; this is predominantly driven by the growing sample of unpolarised bursts that are, in almost all cases, wider ($\gg$10 ms) and fainter ($\ll$10$^{34}$ ergs s$^{-1}$ Hz$^{-1}$) than the median ASKAP detection.

astro-ph.HE↗
arXiv2026

Why most neutron star low-mass X-ray binaries accrete transiently: an evolutionary study of transient and persistent phases

A neutron star (NS) low-mass X-ray binary (LMXB), in which an NS accretes matter from a low-mass donor star, is an ideal source for probing some fundamental aspects of physics and astronomy, such as strong gravity, superdense matter, and the accretion-ejection processes. However, to reliably achieve these goals, one must adequately understand NS LMXBs, including why some accrete persistently and others transiently. Focused models, such as those based on a thermal-viscous instability in the accretion disk, are considered to explain transient accretion. However, broader perspectives, including which LMXB parameter values and phases cause transients and why there are more transients than persistents, remain poorly understood. Here, our computation of the long-term evolution of NS LMXBs addresses these questions, providing insight into LMXB parameters and phases, naturally producing more transients than persistents, and being partially consistent with the known properties of observed sources. For example, we typically find a greater fraction of persistent phase at lower orbital periods from the LMXB evolution computation, which is somewhat consistent with observations. However, a lack of full consistency calls for improving the aforementioned focused models, and our computations provide a new way to discriminate among these models.

astro-ph.HE↗