A 2.9 hr Periodic Radio Transient with an Optical Counterpart

Abstract We present a long-period radio transient (GLEAM-X J0704−37) discovered to have an optical counterpart, consistent with a cool main-sequence star of spectral type M3. The radio periodicity occurs at the longest period yet found, 2.9 hr, and was discovered in archival low-frequency data from the Murchison Widefield Array. High time resolution observations from MeerKAT show that pulsations from the source display complex microstructure and high linear polarisation, suggesting a pulsar-like emission mechanism occurring due to strong, ordered magnetic fields. The timing residuals, measured over more than a decade, show tentative evidence of a ∼6 yr modulation. The high Galactic latitude of the system and the M-dwarf star excludes a magnetar interpretation, suggesting a more likely M-dwarf/white dwarf binary scenario for this system.

Authors

Publication Details

Journal
The Astrophysical Journal Letters
Published
2024-11-26
DOI
https://doi.org/10.3847/2041-8213/ad890e
Citations
38
Primary Topic
Pulsars and Gravitational Waves Research
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
12.60

Funders

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article

A 2.9 hr Periodic Radio Transient with an Optical Counterpart

N. Rea, Sarah Buchner, A. Williams, F. Coti Zelati et al.
38 citations
The Astrophysical Journal Letters
Pulsars and Gravitational Waves Research
12.60
article

A 2.9 hr Periodic Radio Transient with an Optical Counterpart

N. Rea, Sarah Buchner, A. Williams, F. Coti Zelati, Bradley W. Meyers, Jay Strader, Ryan T Urquhart, Christopher Horvath, E. Aydi, S. J. McSweeney, N. Hurley‐Walker, Timothy J. Galvin, Laura B. Chomiuk, Arash Bahramian, M. Bailes
article en
38 citations

Abstract

Abstract We present a long-period radio transient (GLEAM-X J0704−37) discovered to have an optical counterpart, consistent with a cool main-sequence star of spectral type M3. The radio periodicity occurs at the longest period yet found, 2.9 hr, and was discovered in archival low-frequency data from the Murchison Widefield Array. High time resolution observations from MeerKAT show that pulsations from the source display complex microstructure and high linear polarisation, suggesting a pulsar-like emission mechanism occurring due to strong, ordered magnetic fields. The timing residuals, measured over more than a decade, show tentative evidence of a ∼6 yr modulation. The high Galactic latitude of the system and the M-dwarf star excludes a magnetar interpretation, suggesting a more likely M-dwarf/white dwarf binary scenario for this system.

The Astrophysical Journal LettersVol. 976(2)
National Aeronautics and Space Administration, European Space Agency, Consell Català de Recerca i Innovació
Openalex Percentile: Top 1%
Pulsars and Gravitational Waves Research
12.60
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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