Hulse Catches the Pulse!

Hulse Catches the Pulse!

By: Jacob Straley, Jacob Houdyschell, Chandler Smith, Nathan Keithline, Allie Sperry, and student mentor Ethel Perez

Our Goal

• To determine if our data contained pulsar candidates.

• If so, what are their period and dispersion measure.– Follow up candidates chosen by likeliness that

they are pulsars.• Are they known or unknown?– If known, what are exact RA and Dec?

1643-1224 Known

• RA: 16:43:38.15544• Dec: -12:24:58.735• Dispersion Measure: 62.393• Period: 4.62206436 ms• Rise Time: 16:20 EDT• Set Time: 3:17 EDT• 1st in follow up.

1610-1322 Known

• RA: 16:10:42.77• Dec: -13:22:22• Period: 1018.392746362 ms• Dispersion Measure: 49.13• Rise Time: 16:48 EDT• Set Time: 2:37 EDT• 2nd in follow up.

1219-1608 Unknown

• RA: 12:19:00.2619• Dec: -16:08:18.2256• Dispersion Measure: 67.638• Period: 1.97656239 ms• Rise Time: 12:21 EDT• Set Time: 22:40 EDT• 3rd in follow up.

0824-1609 Unknown

• RA: 08:24:54.0693• Dec: -16:09:32.2370• Dispersion Measure: 647.068• Period: 25.02671343 ms• Rise Time: 8:01 EDT• Set Time: 18:23 EDT• 4th in follow up.

Our GBT Follow Up Time

• While we had control of the GBT, we managed to look at three known pulsars, two of them in binary systems and one we believe to have been coming out of an eclipse.

• We dropped candidate 0824-1609 because it was both outside the galaxy and already set.– We used the GBT from 7:30 – 8:00 pm and again

from 9:30 - 10:00 pm EDT.

J1643-1224

J1610-1322

J1810+1745

Woops…

While attempting to point the GBT at the final radio source, Jacob Houdyschell killed the GBT…

GBT Conclusion

• As predicted, our two known pulsar candidates produced very clear results in the plots.

• Things that we did not expect were the sirens after us touching the computer. Turns out we pretty much fried the antenna.

Follow-Up Questions

• Were our untested candidates actually pulsars?

• Did J1810+1745 come out of an eclipse or drift into view?

• What was actually at 0824-1609?• Actually how bad was the RFI in J1610-1322?• Why did the GBT go berserk?

Any Questions?