Scientist says pulsar may have four poles

SEATTLE, Jan. 10 (UPI) -- The neutron star in the Crab Nebula may have four magnetic poles, which would be a cosmic first, a Puerto Rican scientist said.

A neutron star, the remnant of a star after a supernova explosion, sometimes is called a pulsar because it emits radio waves similar to a lighthouse track of light. The profile of the Crab Nebula star's pulse suggests the magnetic field that drives its emission is different, the BBC said.

The Crab Nebula pulsar has two pulses that can be identified, Tim Hankins, from the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico, said during the American Astronomical Society meeting in Seattle. The profiles of pulses from the north and south poles of a neutron star should be identical.

Profiles for these pulses weren't, which Hankins said is the first time this has been noted in a pulsar.

"What we think is that there is another pole, possibly with a partner, that is influencing and distorting the magnetic field," he said, explaining that magnetic poles always come in pairs, so the fourth pole is distinctly likely.

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