Optical pulsar identifiedIn 1969, an optical pulsar was identified for the first time by University of Arizona astronomers led by John Cocke and Michael Disney at the Steward Observatory. It was discovered in the Crab Nebula. Fourteen months before, the first type of pulsar to be discovered was in the radio spectrum and was detected on 28 Nov 1967 by Jocelyn Bell, a graduate student of Anthony Hewish. Most pulsars emit regular pulses of radio waves, some up to 1,000 pulses per second,. They are believed to be neutron stars with exceedingly rapid spin. Optical pulsarsflash at a similar rate, which is too fast for the eye to perceive. The Arizona astronomers used a stroboscopic technique to look at a known radio spectrum pulsar, at a time when an optical pulsar was only a theoretical question. Only a handful have been found since.« |
