In:
Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society, Oxford University Press (OUP)
Abstract:
Observations of pulsar scintillation are among the few astrophysical probes of very small-scale (≲ au) phenomena in the interstellar medium (ISM). In particular, characterization of scintillation arcs, including their curvature and intensity distributions, can be related to interstellar turbulence and potentially over-pressurized plasma in local ISM inhomogeneities, such as supernova remnants, HII regions, and bow shocks. Here we present a survey of eight pulsars conducted at the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST), revealing a diverse range of scintillation arc characteristics at high sensitivity. These observations reveal more arcs than measured previously for our sample. At least nine arcs are observed toward B1929+10 at screen distances spanning $\sim 90~{{\%}}$ of the pulsar’s 361 pc path-length to the observer. Four arcs are observed toward B0355+54, with one arc yielding a screen distance as close as ∼105 au ( & lt;1 pc) from either the pulsar or the observer. Several pulsars show highly truncated, low-curvature arcs that may be attributable to scattering near the pulsar. The scattering screen constraints are synthesized with continuum maps of the local ISM and other well-characterized pulsar scintillation arcs, yielding a three-dimensional view of the scattering media in context.
Type of Medium:
Online Resource
ISSN:
0035-8711
,
1365-2966
DOI:
10.1093/mnras/stad3683
Language:
English
Publisher:
Oxford University Press (OUP)
Publication Date:
2023
detail.hit.zdb_id:
2016084-7
SSG:
16,12
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