The detection of five new fast radio bursts (FRBs) found in the 1.4-GHz High Time Resolution Universe high-latitude survey at Parkes, is presented. The rate implied is 7
$^{+5}_{-3}\times 10^3$
...(95 per cent) FRBs sky−1 d−1 above a fluence of 0.13 Jy ms for an FRB of 0.128 ms duration to 1.5 Jy ms for 16 ms duration. One of these FRBs has a two-component profile, in which each component is similar to the known population of single component FRBs and the two components are separated by 2.4 ± 0.4 ms. All the FRB components appear to be unresolved following deconvolution with a scattering tail and accounting for intrachannel smearing. The two-component burst, FRB 121002, also has the highest dispersion measure (1629 pc cm−3) of any FRB to-date. Many of the proposed models to explain FRBs use a single high-energy event involving compact objects (such as neutron-star mergers) and therefore cannot easily explain a two-component FRB. Models that are based on extreme versions of flaring, pulsing, or orbital events, however, could produce multiple component profiles. The compatibility of these models and the FRB rate implied by these detections is discussed.
Analysis of 10 years of high-precision timing data on the millisecond pulsar PSR J0437-4715 has resulted in a model-independent kinematic distance based on an apparent orbital period derivative, ...image, determined at the 1.5% level of precision (image pc), making it one of the most accurate stellar distance estimates published to date. The discrepancy between this measurement and a previously published parallax distance estimate is attributed to errors in the DE200 solar system ephemerides. The precise measurement of image allows a limit on the variation of Newton's gravitational constant, image yr super(-1). We also constrain any anomalous acceleration along the line of sight to the pulsar to image s super(-1) at 95% confidence, and derive a pulsar mass, image, one of the highest estimates so far obtained.
High-sensitivity radio-frequency observations of millisecond pulsars usually show stochastic, broad-band, pulse-shape variations intrinsic to the pulsar emission process. These variations induce ...jitter noise in pulsar timing observations; understanding the properties of this noise is of particular importance for the effort to detect gravitational waves with pulsar timing arrays. We assess the short-term profile and timing stability of 22 millisecond pulsars that are part of the Parkes Pulsar Timing Array sample by examining intraobservation arrival time variability and single-pulse phenomenology. In 7 of the 22 pulsars, in the band centred at approximately 1400 MHz, we find that the brightest observations are limited by intrinsic jitter. We find consistent results, either detections or upper limits, for jitter noise in other frequency bands. PSR J1909−3744 shows the lowest levels of jitter noise, which we estimate to contribute ∼10 ns root mean square error to the arrival times for hour-duration observations. Larger levels of jitter noise are found in pulsars with wider pulses and distributions of pulse intensities. The jitter noise in PSR J0437−4715 decorrelates over a bandwidth of ∼2 GHz. We show that the uncertainties associated with timing pulsar models can be improved by including physically motivated jitter uncertainties. Pulse-shape variations will limit the timing precision at future, more sensitive, telescopes; it is imperative to account for this noise when designing instrumentation and timing campaigns for these facilities.
We present initial results from the low-latitude Galactic plane region of the High Time Resolution Universe pulsar survey conducted at the Parkes 64-m radio telescope. We discuss the computational ...challenges arising from the processing of the terabyte-sized survey data. Two new radio interference mitigation techniques are introduced, as well as a partially coherent segmented acceleration search algorithm which aims to increase our chances of discovering highly relativistic short-orbit binary systems, covering a parameter space including potential pulsar–black hole binaries. We show that under a constant acceleration approximation, a ratio of data length over orbital period of ≈0.1 results in the highest effectiveness for this search algorithm. From the 50 per cent of data processed thus far, we have redetected 435 previously known pulsars and discovered a further 60 pulsars, two of which are fast-spinning pulsars with periods less than 30 ms. PSR J1101−6424 is a millisecond pulsar whose heavy white dwarf (WD) companion and short spin period of 5.1 ms indicate a rare example of full-recycling via Case A Roche lobe overflow. PSR J1757−27 appears to be an isolated recycled pulsar with a relatively long spin period of 17 ms. In addition, PSR J1244−6359 is a mildly recycled binary system with a heavy WD companion, PSR J1755−25 has a significant orbital eccentricity of 0.09 and PSR J1759−24 is likely to be a long-orbit eclipsing binary with orbital period of the order of tens of years. Comparison of our newly discovered pulsar sample to the known population suggests that they belong to an older population. Furthermore, we demonstrate that our current pulsar detection yield is as expected from population synthesis.
We present the fourth in a series of catalogs of gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) observed with Fermi's Gamma-ray Burst Monitor (Fermi-GBM). It extends the six year catalog by four more years, now covering ...the 10 year time period from trigger enabling on 2008 July 12 to 2018 July 11. During this time period GBM triggered almost twice a day on transient events, 2356 of which we identified as cosmic GRBs. Additional trigger events were due to solar flare events, magnetar burst activities, and terrestrial gamma-ray flashes. The intention of the GBM GRB catalog series is to provide updated information to the community on the most important observables of the GBM-detected GRBs. For each GRB the location and main characteristics of the prompt emission, the duration, peak flux, and fluence are derived. The latter two quantities are calculated for the 50-300 keV energy band, where the maximum energy release of GRBs in the instrument reference system is observed and also for a broader energy band from 10-1000 keV, exploiting the full energy range of GBM's low-energy detectors. Furthermore, information is given on the settings of the triggering criteria and exceptional operational conditions during years 7 to 10 in the mission. This fourth catalog is an official product of the Fermi-GBM science team, and the data files containing the complete results are available from the High-Energy Astrophysics Science Archive Research Center.
In recent years, millisecond-duration radio signals originating in distant galaxies appear to have been discovered in the so-called fast radio bursts. These signals are dispersed according to a ...precise physical law and this dispersion is a key observable quantity, which, in tandem with a redshift measurement, can be used for fundamental physical investigations. Every fast radio burst has a dispersion measurement, but none before now have had a redshift measurement, because of the difficulty in pinpointing their celestial coordinates. Here we report the discovery of a fast radio burst and the identification of a fading radio transient lasting ~6 days after the event, which we use to identify the host galaxy; we measure the galaxy's redshift to be z = 0.492 ± 0.008. The dispersion measure and redshift, in combination, provide a direct measurement of the cosmic density of ionized baryons in the intergalactic medium of ΩIGM = 4.9 ± 1.3 per cent, in agreement with the expectation from the Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe, and including all of the so-called 'missing baryons'. The ~6-day radio transient is largely consistent with the radio afterglow of a short γ-ray burst, and its existence and timescale do not support progenitor models such as giant pulses from pulsars, and supernovae. This contrasts with the interpretation of another recently discovered fast radio burst, suggesting that there are at least two classes of bursts.
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IJS, KISLJ, NUK, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
We present the sensitivity of the Parkes Pulsar Timing Array to gravitational waves (GWs) emitted by individual supermassive black hole binary systems in the early phases of coalescing at the cores ...of merged galaxies. Our analysis includes a detailed study of the effects of fitting a pulsar timing model to non-white timing residuals. Pulsar timing is sensitive at nanoHertz frequencies and hence complementary to Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory and Laser Interferometer Space Antenna. We place a sky-averaged constraint on the merger rate of nearby (z < 0.6) black hole binaries in the early phases of coalescence with a chirp mass of 1010 M☉ of less than one merger every 7 yr. The prospects for future GW astronomy of this type with the proposed Square Kilometre Array telescope are discussed.
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BFBNIB, FZAB, GIS, IJS, IZUM, KILJ, NLZOH, NUK, OILJ, PILJ, PNG, SAZU, SBCE, SBMB, UL, UM, UPUK
We have used millisecond pulsars (MSPs) from the southern High Time Resolution Universe (HTRU) intermediate latitude survey area to simulate the distribution and total population of MSPs in the ...Galaxy. Our model makes use of the scalefactor method, which estimates the ratio of the total number of MSPs in the Galaxy to the known sample. Using our best-fitting value for the z-height, z = 500 pc, we find an underlying population of MSPs of 8.3(±4.2) × 104 sources down to a limiting luminosity of L
min = 0.1 mJy kpc2 and a luminosity distribution with a steep slope of d log N/d log L = −1.45 ± 0.14. However, at the low end of the luminosity distribution, the uncertainties introduced by small number statistics are large. By omitting very low luminosity pulsars, we find a Galactic population above L
min = 0.2 mJy kpc2 of only 3.0(±0.7) × 104 MSPs. We have also simulated pulsars with periods shorter than any known MSP, and estimate the maximum number of sub-MSPs in the Galaxy to be 7.8(±5.0) × 104 pulsars at L = 0.1 mJy kpc2. In addition, we estimate that the high and low latitude parts of the southern HTRU survey will detect 68 and 42 MSPs, respectively, including 78 new discoveries. Pulsar luminosity, and hence flux density, is an important input parameter in the model. Some of the published flux densities for the pulsars in our sample do not agree with the observed flux densities from our data set, and we have instead calculated average luminosities from archival data from the Parkes Telescope. We found many luminosities to be very different than their catalogue values, leading to very different population estimates. Large variations in flux density highlight the importance of including scintillation effects in MSP population studies.
We have embarked on a survey for pulsars and fast transients using the 13-beam multibeam receiver on the Parkes Radio Telescope. Installation of a digital backend allows us to record 400 MHz of ...bandwidth for each beam, split into 1024 channels and sampled every 64 μs. Limits of the receiver package restrict us to a 340 MHz observing band centred at 1352 MHz. The factor of 8 improvement in frequency resolution over previous multibeam surveys allows us to probe deeper into the Galactic plane for short-duration signals such as the pulses from millisecond pulsars. We plan to survey the entire southern sky in 42 641 pointings, split into low, mid and high Galactic latitude regions, with integration times of 4200, 540 and 270 s, respectively. Simulations suggest that we will discover 400 pulsars, of which 75 will be millisecond pulsars. With ∼30 per cent of the mid-latitude survey complete, we have redetected 223 previously known pulsars and discovered 27 pulsars, five of which are millisecond pulsars. The newly discovered millisecond pulsars tend to have larger dispersion measures than those discovered in previous surveys, as expected from the improved time and frequency resolution of our instrument.
‘Perytons’ are millisecond-duration transients of terrestrial origin, whose frequency-swept emission mimics the dispersion of an astrophysical pulse that has propagated through tenuous cold plasma. ...In fact, their similarity to FRB 010724 had previously cast a shadow over the interpretation of ‘fast radio bursts’ (FRBs), which otherwise appear to be of extragalactic origin. Until now, the physical origin of the dispersion-mimicking perytons had remained a mystery. We have identified strong out-of-band emission at 2.3–2.5 GHz associated with several peryton events. Subsequent tests revealed that a peryton can be generated at 1.4 GHz when a microwave oven door is opened prematurely and the telescope is at an appropriate relative angle. Radio emission escaping from microwave ovens during the magnetron shut-down phase neatly explains all of the observed properties of the peryton signals. Now that the peryton source has been identified, we furthermore demonstrate that the microwave ovens on site could not have caused FRB 010724. This and other distinct observational differences show that FRBs are excellent candidates for genuine extragalactic transients.
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