Angular acceleration of a pulsar

[vertex78]

A pulsar is a rapidly rotating neutron star that emits radio pulses with precise synchronization, there being one such pulse for each rotation of the star. The period T of rotation is found by measuring the time between pulses. At present, the pulsar in the central region of the Crab nebula has a period of rotation of T = 0.19000000 s, and this is observed to be increasing at the rate of 0.00000380 s/y.

I found the angular velocity to be 33.07 rad/s, I found this by 1/T*2PI

Now I need to solve the angular velocity. I tried using the rotational kinematic equation:
Wf = Wi + alpha * t

where:
Wf = angular velocity final
Wi = angular velocity initial
alpha = angular acceleration
t = time

Since the period of rotation is increasing by 0.00000380 s/y I added this to 0.19 and then found the Wf by take 1/.19000380 *2PI

I used the angular velocity that I already solved for Wi, the 33.07 rad/s

then for the time, it would be 1 year right? But does this need to be in seconds?

So I plugged these into the equation and solved for alpha

(Wf - Wi)/t = alpha
(33.068rad/s-33.069rad/s)/31556926s = -3.1689x10^-11 rad/s^2

But this is not the correct answer. Any advice?

 

[Doc Al]

(Wf - Wi)/t = alpha
(33.068rad/s-33.069rad/s)/31556926s = -3.1689x10^-11 rad/s^2

But this is not the correct answer. Any advice?

Your error is in rounding off your values for W. Use many more significant figures in your calculator and you get a better estimate for the change in W.

 

[m2003]

I would suggest double-checking your calculations and units to ensure accuracy. The angular velocity should be in radians per second (rad/s), not just radians (rad). Additionally, the time should be converted to seconds, as the units for angular acceleration are radians per second squared (rad/s^2).

Also, it is important to note that the angular acceleration of a pulsar is not constant and can vary over time. Therefore, the value you calculated may not accurately represent the current angular acceleration of the pulsar. Further research and observation would be needed to determine the precise angular acceleration of the pulsar.