Pulsars, spiders and plants

Rene Breton (University of Manchester)

July 27, 2023

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Abstract: Pulsars in binary systems are fantastic physics laboratories, primarily because their orbital dynamics allow us to probe binary evolution, test gravity theories, measure neutron star masses, etc. Among them are the black widows and redbacks, which are nicknamed after the deadly arachnids because the millisecond pulsar they contain gradually destroys their low mass companion. In the last decade, the number of known spiders has grown exponentially to the point of becoming the most prevalent type of fast rotating binary pulsar. In this talk, I will present some of the recent efforts undertaken with the MeerKAT telescope to uncover these pulsars and review some of the key advances they have provided for our understanding of binary evolution, stellar physics under extreme irradiation, and measurement of neutron star masses. As an aside, I will also describe how I have transferred the methods I use in optical astronomy to the tracking of an invasive plant using Earth observations and a low cost, purpose-built multiband imager mounted on a drone.