XMM-Newton measures the magnetic field of a neutron star for the first time
Copyright: ESA/CESR
The neutron star 1E1207.4-5209 is seen as the bright yellow object in the centre of this image, which was taken with the European Photon Imaging Camera (EPIC) aboard ESA's X-ray observatory, XMM-Newton. There are an estimated 100 000 000 neutron stars in the Galaxy. To date, only 1400 have been discovered via their radio emission and, of those, around 50 are known to emit X-rays. The image is the result of the longest observation performed so far on a galactic source by XMM-Newton.
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Last Update: 19 Jun 2003
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