China News Service, Beijing, May 7 (Reporter Sun Zifa) The reporter learned from the National Astronomical Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences on May 7 that based on the observations of the 500-meter spherical radio telescope (FAST) commonly known as the "Chinese Sky Eye", the National Astronomical Observatory Li Dan and Zhu Weiwei For the first time, Dr. Yao Jumei from the research team found evidence that the three-dimensional velocity of a pulsar is collinear with its rotation axis.
This important research finding is a representative result of the comprehensive and comprehensive analysis of the "China Sky Eye" pulsar data, and it also marks the beginning of the "China Sky Eye" in-depth study of pulsars.
The research found that the relevant results papers were published online by the international professional academic journal Nature Astronomy on the night of May 6, Beijing time.
Schematic diagram of the motion and spin directions of the supernova remnant S147 and the pulsar J0538+2817 (graphic: Huang Kun, Wang Pei) Photo courtesy of the National Astronomical Observatory
According to the National Astronomical Observatory, the "China Sky Eye" is currently the world's most sensitive single-aperture radio telescope. With the support of the "China Sky Eye" Scientific Committee, the Time Allocation Committee, and the Operation and Development Center, the systematic measurement of pulsars in this direction is gradually Unfold, the follow-up is expected to reveal the origin of neutron spin in depth.
According to the research team, pulsars are neutron stars spawned by supernova explosions when massive stars die.
Current supernova simulations cannot produce neutron stars whose speed and rotation axis are collinear, showing that humans still need to deepen their understanding of the physical mechanisms involved in the complex process of the origin of neutron stars, such as neutrino radiation.
Compared with the predecessor star (OB star), the young pulsar has a higher movement speed and faster rotation.
After decades of research, scientists have discovered that the speed and rotation axis of some young pulsars generally have a collinear relationship.
However, since it is very difficult to measure the radial velocity of young pulsars, the comparison of the pulsar's velocity and the direction of the rotation axis in previous studies stays on a two-dimensional plane perpendicular to the line of sight.
In this latest study, based on the "China Sky Eye" observation of the pulsar J0538+2817 in the supernova remnant S147, the pulsar J0538+2817 in the supernova remnant S147 was obtained by scintillation analysis for the first time. The position and velocity are combined with the existing tangential velocity measurement to obtain the three-dimensional velocity, and the orientation of the three-dimensional rotation axis is obtained through high-precision polarization data analysis.
Among them, given the distribution of the three-dimensional velocity and rotation axis vector on the unit sphere, the angle between these two vectors is less than 23 degrees in the 68% confidence interval.
It is understood that this research work to find evidence that the pulsar's three-dimensional velocity and rotation axis are collinear is supported by the FAST FELLOWSHIP of the Astronomical University Scientific Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The main cooperation units also include the Xinjiang Astronomical Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Australian Organization for Science and Industry, and the University of California. , Max Planck Institute of Radio Astronomy, Germany, University of Manchester, UK and University of Oberlin, USA. (Finish)