Pulsars: Cosmic Lighthouses of Radio Waves

Pulsars are rapidly spinning neutron stars that emit beams of radiation from their poles.
As they rotate, their beams sweep across Earth like a cosmic lighthouse.
Some pulsars spin hundreds of times per second with incredible precision.
The first pulsar was discovered in 1967 by Jocelyn Bell Burnell and Antony Hewish.
Pulsars are so regular that they rival atomic clocks in timing accuracy.
They are often detected in radio waves, though some also shine in X-rays and gamma rays.
Millisecond pulsars are thought to be “recycled” by stealing matter from companion stars.
Pulsar timing arrays may help detect gravitational waves from supermassive black holes.
The Crab Pulsar, left behind by a supernova in 1054, still flashes 30 times per second.
Pulsars turn stellar corpses into some of the universe’s most reliable beacons.