All of the ATNF Facilities are used to study pulsars. Murriyang, our Parkes radio telescope, has discovered a large fraction of the known pulsars, the ATCA is used to study a diverse range of radio emission from stellar objects (including pulsars), the LBA measures positions, proper motions and parallaxes and ASKAP continues to discover new pulsars and pulsar-like objects.

Capabilities

FacilityCapabilities
ASKAPASKAP does not have a pulsar-specific observing mode, but pulsars are observed as continuum point sources and, for bright pulsars and RRATs, single pulses can be detected using the transient detection mode.
ATCAPulsars can be observed as continuum sources during normal imaging observations and also phased-binned using the pulsar binning mode.
MurriyangThe Murriyang backend systems (for both the ultra-wide bandwidth receiver and the cryogenically cooled PAF) provide both pulsar searching (high time resolution) and pulsar folding modes. The pulsar folding modes can be used for young pulsar timing and also for high precision timing of millisecond pulsars. It is now also possible to produce high spectral-resolution data phase-aligned with a pulsar. This capability can be used to measure HI absorption towards a pulsar, or look for stimulated OH emission.
LBAPulsar gating observations are possible. The LBA can be used for astrometric observations to determine pulsar positions, parallaxes, and proper motions.

Resources

An illustration of a blue orb with red bands streaming from the North Pole to the South Pole. Jets of light are beaming from each pole.

ATNF pulsar catalogue

Provides access o the parameters of all the known pulsars. The catalogue is kept up to date from published parameters of pulsars by ATNF staff

Astronomers working with Murriyang, our Parkes radio telescope on Wiradjuri Country

PSRFITS

The definition of the PSRFITS file format, which is used for pulsar fold-mode and search-mode observations.

An illustration of a blue orb with red bands streaming from the North Pole to the South Pole. Jets of light are beaming from each pole.

The ATNF pulsar group

The ATNF pulsar group have used the Murriyang, ATCA and ASKAP telescopes to study radio pulsars. We have active research projects in high precision pulsar timing, young pulsar monitoring and in searching for new pulsars.

An illustration where the Earth sits on an undulating web, surrounded by points of light. Beyond the points of light are pairs of black holes about to merge into each other.

The Parkes Pulsar Timing Array