Pulsar Discovery by Global Volunteer Computing
Abstract
Einstein@Home aggregates the computer power of hundreds of thousands of volunteers from 192 countries to mine large data sets. It has now found a 40.8-hertz isolated pulsar in radio survey data from the Arecibo Observatory taken in February 2007. Additional timing observations indicate that this pulsar is likely a disrupted recycled pulsar. PSR J2007+2722’s pulse profile is remarkably wide with emission over almost the entire spin period; the pulsar likely has closely aligned magnetic and spin axes. The massive computing power provided by volunteers should enable many more such discoveries.
- Publication:
-
Science
- Pub Date:
- September 2010
- DOI:
- 10.1126/science.1195253
- arXiv:
- arXiv:1008.2172
- Bibcode:
- 2010Sci...329.1305K
- Keywords:
-
- ASTRONOMY;
- Astrophysics - Galaxy Astrophysics;
- Astrophysics - Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
- E-Print:
- 8 pages, 1 figure