Abstract
Binary pulsar systems are superb probes of stellar and binary evolution and the physics of extreme environments. In a survey with the Arecibo telescope, we have found PSR J1903+0327, a radio pulsar with a rotational period of 2.15 milliseconds in a highly eccentric (e = 0.44) 95-day orbit around a solar mass (MFisheye) companion. Infrared observations identify a possible main-sequence companion star. Conventional binary stellar evolution models predict neither large orbital eccentricities nor main-sequence companions around millisecond pulsars. Alternative formation scenarios involve recycling a neutron star in a globular cluster, then ejecting it into the Galactic disk, or membership in a hierarchical triple system. A relativistic analysis of timing observations of the pulsar finds its mass to be 1.74 ± 0.04 M Fisheye, an unusually high value.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 1309-1312 |
Number of pages | 4 |
Journal | Science |
Volume | 320 |
Issue number | 5881 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jun 6 2008 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- General