When you think of the deep cosmos, you might imagine a silent, unchanging void. But scattered across the universe are objects so dense, massive, and incredibly fast that they challenge our very understanding of physics: pulsars.
In a recent conversation, Patrick McNameeKing sat down with Nicole Gugliucci from Saint Anselm College to explore why these collapsed stellar remnants are far more than just deep-space anomalies—they are actually some of the most powerful scientific instruments available to us.
Cosmic Clocks
According to Gugliucci, pulsars serve as incredibly reliable clocks "because they are so massive and so dense, their rotation is incredibly stable if they don't have anything interacting with them."
Discovering Alien Worlds
We often think of planets as orbiting bright, warm stars like our sun. However, the first exoplanet—a planet outside our solar system—ever discovered was found in 1992 orbiting one of these dead stars.
Because pulsars keep such perfect time, any outside gravitational force disrupts their rhythm. Scientists were able to detect this first alien world, because the planet's gravitational pull would affect the spin of those pulsars and make their timing go off.
Practical Uses?
Today, the cutting edge of pulsar research focuses on a phenomenon first predicted by Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity: gravitational waves.
When massive, violent events occur in deep space—such as two black holes colliding—they send ripples through the very fabric of the universe.
While we have highly sensitive detectors built on Earth to look for these cosmic ripples, pulsars give us a galaxy-sized laboratory.
As Gallucci points out, "by doing timing of pulsars in different locations, we can also detect those little ripples."
Have a question about the cosmos?
If you have questions about pulsars, black holes, or the night sky, send an email to cosmic@nhpr.org.
