Abstract
THE rotation rate of pulsars decreases as kinetic energy is lost by the emission of electromagnetic radiation and particles. This gradual spin-down is sometimes interrupted, however, by abrupt increases in rotational frequency. Such discontinuities—known as glitches—arise because of structural changes in neutron stars, and can provide valuable information on their interiors. Glitches generally occur more frequently in younger pulsars1. A timing program has been monitoring the periods of the forty predominantly young pulsars found in the Jodrell Bank 1,400-MHz survey2,3,4. As part of this study, we report here the observation that one pulsar, PSR1737–30, has undergone no fewer than five glitches in the past three years. Although not especially young, this pulsar is glitching at a rate nearly an order of magnitude greater than any other known pulsar. We speculate that the higher temperatures associated with the youngest pulsars might prevent the build-up of the stresses the sudden release of which is the cause of glitches. If so, this might explain the lower glitch activity now evident in those pulsars that are less than 2,000 years old.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alpar, M. A. & Ho, C. Mon. Not. R. astr. Soc. 204, 655–667 (1983).
Clifton, T. R. thesis, Univ. of Manchester (1985).
Clifton, T. R. & Lyne, A. G. Nature 320, 43–45 (1986).
McKenna, J. in Timing Neutron Stars (eds Ögelman, H. & van den Heuvel, E. P. J.) 143–152 (Kluwer, Dordrecht, 1989).
Standish, E. M. Astr. Astrophys. 114, 297–302 (1982).
Backer, D. C. in Timing Neutron Stars (eds Ogelman, H. & van den Heuvel, E. P. J.) 3–16 (Kluwer, Dordrecht, 1989).
Manchester, R. N. & Taylor, J. H. in Pulsars (Freeman, San Francisco, 1977).
Lyne, A. G. & McKenna, J. Nature 340, 367–369 (1989).
Braun, R., Goss, W. M. & Lyne, A. G. Astrophys. J. 340, 355–361 (1989).
Cordes, J. M., Downs, G. S. & Krause-Polstorff, J. Astrophys. J. 330, 847–869 (1988).
Pines, D., Shaham, J. & Ruderman, M. A. in I.A.U. Symp. No. 53: Physics of Dense Matter (ed. Hansen, C. J.) 189–207 (Reidel, Dordrecht, 1974).
Ruderman, M. Nature 223, 597–598 (1969).
Pines, D., Shaham, J. & Ruderman, M. A. Nature phys. Sci. 237, 83, 96 (1972).
Alpar, M. A., Anderson, P. W., Pines, D. & Shaham, J. Astrophys. J. 276, 325–334 (1984).
Pines, D. & Alpar, M. A. Nature 316, 27–32 (1985).
Alpar, M. A., Cheng, K. S., Pines, D. & Shaham, J. Mon. Not. R. astr. Soc. 233, 25–31 (1988).
Alpar, M. A., Cheng, K. S. & Pines, D. Astrophys. J. 346, 823–832 (1989).
Manchester, R. N. & Peterson, B. A. Astrophys. J. 342, L23–L25 (1989).
Manchester, R. N., Durdin, J. M. & Newton, L. M. Nature 313, 374–376 (1985).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
McKenna, J., Lyne, A. PSR1737–30 and period discontinuities in young pulsars. Nature 343, 349–350 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1038/343349a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/343349a0
This article is cited by
-
On the pulsar spin frequency derivatives and the glitch activity
Astrophysics and Space Science (2022)
-
Timing irregularities of PSR J1705–1906
Astrophysics and Space Science (2018)
-
A study of microglitches in Hartebeesthoek radio pulsar
Astrophysics and Space Science (2016)
-
Recent glitches detected in the Crab pulsar
Astrophysics and Space Science (2012)
-
Observational features of pulsar glitches
Science China Physics, Mechanics and Astronomy (2010)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.
