Hulse-Taylor Pulsar
Also known as PSR J1915+1606
Hulse-Taylor Pulsar is a pulsar star in the constellation Aquila, about 17,120 light-years from Earth.
Binary pulsar whose shrinking orbit first showed gravitational waves (Nobel Prize 1993)
Facts
| Type | Pulsar star |
|---|---|
| Constellation | Aquila |
| Position (J2000) | 19h 15m 27s, +16° 06′ |
| Distance | 17,120 light-years (its light set off about 17,120 years ago) |
| Brightness | magnitude 22.5 (smaller is brighter; the faintest stars the eye sees are about 6) |
| Studied in | 1,041 scientific papers (SIMBAD) |
When and how to see it
Hulse-Taylor Pulsar is highest in the sky at midnight in July. From India (about 20° N) it climbs to about 86° above the horizon; from 50° N, to about 56°. To see it you need a large telescope or long-exposure photos.
Heights are worked out for India and for 50° N. Set your location in Settings to see them for where you are.
For tonight's best time from your own town, the darkness and the Moon, open it on the map and see its "Tonight from your location" card.
More in Aquila
Everything in Aquila · All 88 constellations · All sky objects
Data: SIMBAD (CDS, Strasbourg; the site's weekly copy) · Data sources & credits