Physics Colloquium - Millisecond Pulsars: Basic Physics from Nature's Celestial Clocks

Millisecond pulsars are some of the most exotic and useful objects known. They are neutron stars with strong magnetic fields spinning at rates of up to 700 times per second. Using a technique known as pulsar timing, we can probe physics inaccessible to other techniques. Some fantastic examples are the equation of state of nuclear matter, innovative tests of general relativity, and
the direct detection of gravitational waves.