Parkes observations for project P1021 semester 2020APRS_10

Brief description

We propose to continue our observations of PSR J1653-45, a 951-ms pulsar in a long, 1.5-yr orbit. Binary pulsars are valuable objects of scientific study, allowing for a wide range of applications, including tests of gravity, probes of the neutron star equation of state, and fossil records of stellar evolution. Long spin-period pulsars in binary systems are generally much rarer than faster-spinning `recycled’ pulsars, and represent an under-explored region of pulsar binary evolution.

In addition to its long orbital period, PSR J1653-45 also experiences extended eclipses, lasting up to half of the orbital period and whose nature is not well understood. These eclipses have also prevented the determination of an orbital or phase-connected timing solution, both vital steps in allowing for the continued study of this system. We propose a targeted, high-cadence observing campaign designed to monitor this pulsar as it transitions out of its eclipsing state. The campaign has the twin goals of both monitoring how the eclipse affects the pulsar’s emission properties, thereby revealed more about the nature of the eclipses themselves, and of extracting as much information regarding the pulsar’s orbit during its least-explored regions, thereby constrained and hopefully solving the pulsar’s orbit and ideally leading to the development of a timing solution. In both instances, we hope to gain a greater understanding of this pulsar’s properties and how it fits into this under-explored class of unrecycled pulsar binaries.