Runaway Pulsar IGR J11014-6103 with Jet, Close-Up
The pulsar, originally discovered by ESA's INTEGRAL satellite, is called IGR J11014-6103 and is moving away from the center of the supernova remnant where it was born at a speed between million and 5 million miles per hour. This supersonic pace makes IGR J11014-6103 one of the fastest moving pulsars ever observed. The tail of the pulsar (a spinning neutron star) stretches for 37 light years , making it the longest jet ever seen from an object in the Milky Way galaxy. There is a distinct corkscrew pattern in the jet. This pattern suggests that the pulsar is wobbling like a top as it spins, while shooting off the jet of particles. Another interesting feature of this image is a structure called a pulsar wind nebula (PWN), a cocoon of high-energy particles that enshrouds the pulsar and produces a comet-like tail behind it. Astronomers had seen the PWN in previous observations, but the new Chandra and ATCA data show that the PWN is almost perpendicular to the direction of the jet. This is intriguing because usually the pulsar's direction of motion, its jet, and its PWN are aligned with one another. Release date February 18, 2014.
Size: 3900px × 3045px
Photo credit: © Photo Researchers / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
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