On the Nature of the Galactic 2CG γ -ray Sources
Abstract
The identification of two γ -ray sources of the COS-B catalogue with radio pulsars is used as an important hint for the identification of the rest of the population. The relevant distributions of γ -ray pulsars visible at the Sun within the limiting sensitivity of COS-B are derived on the following assumptions: (i) the γ -ray luminosity is a decreasing power law of the pulsar age, as indicated by current models; (ii) the scale height of pulsars at creation is equal to that of the supernova remanants; (iii) the pulsars' birth rate and spatial distribution are those published by Taylor & Manchester (1977). As a preliminary result it is shown that 10 to 20 γ -ray pulsars may be visible from the Earth with distributional parameters not distinguishable from those of the 2CG γ -ray sources. We suggest therefore that a significant fraction of the unidentified galactic γ -ray sources are pulsars.
- Publication:
-
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London Series A
- Pub Date:
- June 1981
- DOI:
- 10.1098/rsta.1981.0125
- Bibcode:
- 1981RSPTA.301..495B
- Keywords:
-
- Astronomical Catalogs;
- Gamma Ray Astronomy;
- Pulsars;
- Star Distribution;
- Stellar Evolution;
- Supernova Remnants;
- Galactic Radio Waves;
- Luminosity;
- Molecular Clouds;
- Radiant Flux Density;
- Astronomy;
- ASTRONOMICAL CATALOGS;
- GAMMA RAY ASTRONOMY;
- PULSARS;
- STAR DISTRIBUTION;
- STELLAR EVOLUTION;
- SUPERNOVA REMNANTS;
- GALACTIC RADIO WAVES;
- LUMINOSITY;
- MOLECULAR CLOUDS;
- RADIANT FLUX DENSITY