The Bright Optical Companion to the Eclipsing Millisecond Pulsar in NGC 6397
Open Access
- 1 November 2001
- journal article
- research article
- Published by American Astronomical Society in The Astrophysical Journal
- Vol. 561 (1) , L93-L96
- https://doi.org/10.1086/324563
Abstract
We report the optical identification of the companion to the eclipsing millisecond pulsar PSR J1740-5340 in the globular cluster NGC 6397. A bright variable star with an anomalous red color and optical variability (~0.2 mag) that nicely correlates to the orbital period of the pulsar (~1.35 days) has been found close to the pulsar position. The peculiar shape of the optical light curves is unprecedented for a millisecond pulsar companion and is a clear signature of tidal distortions.Keywords
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