Characterizing Pulsar Distances Using HI Kinematics
TLDR
This paper derives kinematic distances for 66 pulsars using a state-of-the-art Galactic rotation curve, showing consistency with other methods.
Key contributions
- Derived kinematic distances for 66 pulsars using archival HI radial velocity data.
- Employed a state-of-the-art Galactic rotation curve for improved accuracy.
- Distances show <1σ difference from published parallaxes for most pulsars.
- Results are consistent with the NE2025 Galactic electron density model.
Why it matters
Accurate pulsar distances are crucial for their use as astrophysical probes of General Relativity and the interstellar medium. This research improves a primary distance measurement method, HI kinematics, by using an updated Galactic rotation curve. The validated results enhance our understanding of pulsar properties and the Galaxy.
Original Abstract
Distance measurements are fundamental to radio pulsars' use as astrophysical probes of General Relativity and the interstellar medium. One of the primary methods for determining pulsar distances is HI kinematics, which leverages the radial velocities of HI absorption and emission features detected along pulsar lines-of-sight. This method necessarily assumes a model for Galactic rotation, our knowledge of which continues to evolve in both accuracy and precision. In this research note, we derive kinematic distances for 66 pulsars with archival HI radial velocity measurements using a state-of-the-art Galactic rotation curve. The results and software are provided in an online repository. Our kinematic distances differ by $<1σ$ from published parallaxes for nearly all pulsars in the sample that have both types of distance measurement available. Comparison to the NE2025 Galactic electron density model shows general consistency between measured and predicted distances.
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