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Parkes observations for project P939 semester 2016OCTS

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Title Parkes observations for project P939 semester 2016OCTS
 
Creator Daniel John Reardon
 
Subject Astronomical and Space Sciences not elsewhere classified
 
Description Since the work of Keith et al. (2013), we have known that the Parkes Pulsar Timing Array (PPTA) pulsar J1603-7202 showed a clear extreme scattering event (ESE), which lasted about 260 days. As the dynamic spectra for PPTA observations improved, Coles et al. (2015) found that this ESE showed a clear increase in turbulence and used that to show that it must be much more compact than the normal ionised interstellar medium (IISM). Now, with an extra year of data, we have fitted a scattering model to the entire data set. This model provides: the orbital inclination angle; the distance to the scattering region; and the velocity of the IISM. The low inclination angle suggests that the companion is a heavy white dwarf, or possibly a neutron star. However these measurements, and other properties of the ESE such as its velocity and structure, are poorly constrained because the scatter in our data is large. The scatter originates from changes in the IISM over timescales much smaller than our ~12 year observing span. To mitigate this scatter, it is necessary to thoroughly observe this pulsar over one orbital period (~6.3 days). This will allow us to confirm the mass of the companion, and to characterise the nature of the ESE that continues to dominate the scattering environment in the direction of this pulsar.
 
Publisher CSIRO
 
Contributor George Hobbs
William Coles
Matthew Kerr
Ryan Shannon
 
Date 2017-05-26
 
Type —
 
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Identifier csiro:P939-2016OCTS
 
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