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Nature 406, 139-140 (13 July 2000) | doi:10.1038/35018198
Pulsar astronomy: Older than they look
John H. Seiradakis
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Abstract
A pulsar that has 'escaped' from the supernova remnant where it was born is helping astronomers redefine their understanding of pulsar ages. It appears that many apparently young pulsars are in fact older than they seem.
Men who don't know the age of their girlfriends can make a reasonable guess by finding out the age of her parents. This is what Gaensler and Frail1 have done in order to get a lower limit for the age of a pulsar observed to be fleeing away from its parent supernova.
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