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Neutron star

Geminga

Also PSR J0633+1746 · PSR B0633+17

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Geminga — Chandra, X-ray; the pulsar's wind tails
Chandra, X-ray; the pulsar's wind tails. Credit: X-ray: NASA/CXC/PSU/B.Posselt et al. Licence: Public domain (NASA). Source

A nearby neutron star that shines mainly in gamma rays, one of the brightest gamma-ray sources in the sky.

Measured

Distance
about 815 light-years (published estimates 510–1,210)
Constellation
Gemini
Position (J2000)
RA 6h 33m 54s, Dec +17.77°

How far, from the Sun

About 815 light-years. To cross it:

  • Light815 years
  • Voyager 1's speed14.5 million years
  • Driving at 100 km/h8.8 billion years

Voyager 1 at the speed it moved outward over the year to 2026-10-25 (JPL Horizons). Driving: nonstop, never refuelling.

Facts

  • NASA's SAS-2 satellite found it in 1972-73 as a gamma-ray source with no visible counterpart.
  • Its name is Milanese for 'it's not there', and also stands for Gemini gamma-ray source.
  • It spins about four times a second and has a spin-down age of around 340,000 years.

Where this comes from

  • Faherty et al. 2007, HST parallax (250 +120/−62 pc); earlier 157 pc

Every catalogue Ouranos draws is credited on the credits page.