Ultraviolet emission from young and middle-aged pulsars: Connecting X-rays with the optical

Authors: Kargaltsev, Oleg¹; Pavlov, George²

Source: Astrophysics and Space Science, Volume 308, Numbers 1-4, April 2007 , pp. 287-296(10)

Publisher: Springer

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Abstract:

We present the UV spectroscopy and timing of three nearby pulsars (Vela, B0656+14 and Geminga) recently observed with the Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph. We also review the optical and X-ray properties of these pulsars and establish their connection with the UV properties. We show that the multiwavelengths properties of neutron stars (NSs) vary significantly within the sample of middle-aged pulsars. Even larger differences are found between the thermal components of Geminga and B0656+14 as compared to those of radio-quiet isolated NSs. These differences could be attributed to different properties of the NS surface layers.

Keywords: Neutron Stars; Pulsars; Geminga; PSR B0656+14; Vela pulsar; RX J1856.5-3754; RX J0720.4-3125; RX J1308.6+2127; 97.60.Gb; 97.60.Jd

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10509-007-9383-1

Affiliations: 1: Email: oyk100@psu.edu 2: Email: pavlov@astro.psu.edu

Publication date: 2007-04-01