Scientists from the Raman Research Institute (RRI), an autonomous institution of the Department of Science and Technology, have made a significant discovery regarding the Centaurus X-3 pulsar system. The research team, led by researcher Kinjal Roy, found that this high-mass X-ray binary pulsar, located 24,000 light years away in the Centaurus constellation, is accreting material through an accretion disk - a rare occurrence for pulsars of its kind.
The study investigated four secondary emission lines and determined that the variability in these lines is caused by an accretion stream that channels material from the accretion disk toward the pulsar's poles following its magnetic field lines. This accretion stream obscures the satellite's view of the pulsar during rotation, causing decreases in primary emission and increases in secondary emission. The discovery challenges existing models for high-mass X-ray binaries, where accretion typically occurs through direct capture of stellar wind rather than through an accretion disk.
The findings, published in the Astrophysical Journal with DOI 10.3847/1538-4357/adf8e6, will require modification of emission models for such systems and enhance understanding of binary pulsars in general. Centaurus X-3 is one of the first X-ray pulsars discovered and remains one of the most widely studied binary pulsars due to its intense brightness.