We have compiled SpiderCat—the first comprehensive catalog of all publicly known spiders in the Galactic field. The catalog brings together radio timing data and multi-wavelength properties for every known system, currently encompassing 111 spiders and candidates across the main subclasses of redbacks and black widows, as well as rarer types such as transitional, huntsman, and…
In recent years, the LHAASO detector has opened a new window to the very and ultra-high energy Galactic gamma-ray sky, revealing numerous sources capable of emitting in this energy range. However, most of these sources remain unidentified. At the same time, the IceCube detector has finally established the existence of a Galactic neutrino signal, which…
Spiders are eclipsing millisecond pulsar binaries in which the pulsar ablates its low-mass companion; they are classified as black widows or redbacks based on companion mass. PSR J1932+2121 is a recently discovered Galactic-field redback millisecond pulsar (MSP) with a spin period of 14.2 ms, significantly slower than other known redbacks, and an unusually high surface…
The process of accretion onto compact objects and its role in the production of relativistic, collimated jets remains a major open question in astronomy. Transitional millisecond pulsars (tMSPs) provide a rare opportunity to study the formation of relativistic jets in neutron stars that experience low-level accretion yet possess strong magnetic fields. By analyzing archival multiwavelength…
Spiders are millisecond pulsars in compact binary systems. The variable optical emission from their companion stars reveals how the relativistic pulsar wind irradiates the companion and interacts with its outflowing matter. By modelling this optical emission, we can precisely constrain the fundamental parameters of spiders and find super-massive neutron stars, which are usually hosted in…
Compact millisecond pulsar (MSP) binaries are crucial for understanding the formation of massive pulsars and the boundary between neutron stars (NSs) and black holes (BHs). Often referred to as “spiders” due to the cannibalistic interaction between the pulsar and its companion, these systems are broadly categorized into redbacks (RBs, with companion masses between 0.1 and…
Spectroscopic studies of compact binary millisecond pulsars (‘spiders’) are crucial for finding the most massive neutron stars. Using the largest ground-based optical telescopes to take spectra of spider binaries over their orbits, we can measure the radial velocity of their companion stars, which are bright in optical wavelengths, to weigh their neutron stars, which are…
Compact binary millisecond pulsars, also known as “spiders”, host the most massive neutron stars ever observed to date. Expanding the currently known spider population holds the key to determining the maximum neutron star mass, which has crucial implications for astrophysics, nuclear physics and gravitational wave astronomy. Searching for the variable optical emission of their companions…
Compact binary millisecond pulsar systems can host some of the most massive neutron stars. These rapidly rotating neutron stars are orbited by a much less massive companion star, which can be heated by high energy particles from the pulsar wind, causing it to become irradiated. This, along with additional sources of heating from the surface…
Pulsar radio emission, associated with rapidly spinning neutron stars, enables the estimation of their distances in the Galaxy through dispersion measure (DM). The DM quantifies the dispersive delay experienced by electromagnetic radiation as it traverses ionized matter, such as the interstellar medium (ISM). By measuring this delay across a range of frequencies, astronomers can obtain…
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