Universe ID: 10361

Pulsars Emit Gamma-rays from Equator

Released on January 9, 2009

A pulsar is a rapidly spinning and highly magnetized neutron star, the crushed core left behind when a massive sun explodes. Most were found through their pulses at radio wavelengths, which are thought to be caused by narrow, lighthouse-like beams emanating from the star's magnetic poles.

When it comes to gamma-rays, pulsars are no longer lighthouses. A new class of gamma-ray-only pulsars shows that the gamma rays must form in a broader region than the lighthouse-like radio beam. Astronomers now believe the pulsed gamma rays arise far above the neutron star.

Credits

Cruz deWilde (Avant Gravity): Lead Animator
Stefanie Misztal (UMBC): Producer
Steven Ritz (NASA/GSFC): Scientist

Please give credit for this item to:
NASA/Fermi/Cruz deWilde

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https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/10361

Missions:
Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope
GLAST

Data Used:

Fermi/LAT

Event List

Fermi Gamma-ray Large Area Space Telescope (GLAST) Large Area Telescope (LAT)

http://fermi.gsfc.nasa.gov

view all stories where this data set is used

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This item is part of this series:
Astrophysics Animations

Keywords:
SVS >> HDTV
GCMD >> Earth Science >> Spectral/Engineering >> Gamma Ray
SVS >> Gamma Ray Burst
SVS >> Astrophysics
SVS >> Universe
SVS >> Pulsar
SVS >> GLAST
SVS >> Gamma Ray Observatory
SVS >> Fermi
NASA Science >> Universe

GCMD keywords can be found on the Internet with the following citation: Olsen, L.M., G. Major, K. Shein, J. Scialdone, S. Ritz, T. Stevens, M. Morahan, A. Aleman, R. Vogel, S. Leicester, H. Weir, M. Meaux, S. Grebas, C.Solomon, M. Holland, T. Northcutt, R. A. Restrepo, R. Bilodeau, 2013. NASA/Global Change Master Directory (GCMD) Earth Science Keywords. Version 8.0.0.0.0