PSR J1614–2230 PSR J1614–2230 PSR J1614–2230 is a neutron star in a binary system with a white dwarf. It was discovered in 2006 with the Parkes telescope in a survey of unidentified gamma ray sources in the Energetic Gamma Ray Experiment Telescope catalog. PSR J1614–2230 is a millisecond pulsar, a type of neutron star, that spins on its axis roughly 317 times per second, corresponding to a period of 3.15 milliseconds. Like all pulsars, it emits radiation in a beam, similar to a lighthouse. Emission from PSR J1614–2230 is observed as pulses at the spin period of PSR J1614–2230. The pulsed nature
Relativistic beaming accreting compact object, but are thought to be merely a particular variety of AGN.) Beaming (short for relativistic beaming) affects the apparent brightness of a moving object just as a lighthouse affects the appearance of its light source: the light source appears dim or unseen to a ship except when the rotating lighthouse beacon is directed towards a ship, where it then appears very bright. This so-called lighthouse effect illustrates how important the direction of motion (relative to the observer) is in relativistic beaming: if a blob of gas emitting electromagnetic radiation is moving towards the observer then it will