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X-ray Detection of PSR 1757-24 and its Nebular Tail

V. M. Kaspi·E. V. Gotthelf·B. M. Gaensler·M. Lyutikov
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Abstract

We report the first X-ray detection of the radio pulsar PSR B1757-24 using the Chandra X-ray Observatory. The image reveals point-source emission at the pulsar position, consistent with being magnetospheric emission from the pulsar. In addition, we detect a faint tail extending nearly 20" east of the pulsar, in the same direction and with comparable morphology to the pulsar's well-studied radio tail. The X-ray tail is unlikely to be emission left behind following the passage of the pulsar, but rather is probably from synchrotron-emitting pulsar wind particles having flow velocity ~7000 km/s. Assuming the point-source X-ray emission is magnetospheric, the observed X-ray tail represents only ~0.01% of the pulsar's spin-down luminosity, significantly lower than the analogous efficiencies of most known X-ray nebulae surrounding rotation-powered pulsars.

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V. M. Kaspi, E. V. Gotthelf, B. M. Gaensler, M. Lyutikov. 2001-12-06. X-ray Detection of PSR 1757-24 and its Nebular Tail. https://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0112165

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