Pulsed radio emission from a Central Compact Object | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Pulsed radio emission from a Central Compact Object Di Li, Lei Zhang, Alessandro Ridolfi, Erbil Gügercinoğlu, Fernando Camilo, and 5 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8706006/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract The high magnetic fields and rapid spins of young pulsars associated with supernova remnants, such as the Crab and the Vela, established the standard pulsar model in which massive stellar explosions produce rapidly rotating, radio-luminous neutron stars. Central Compact Objects (CCOs), identified in X-rays at the centers of other remnants, challenged this view, as decades of searches yielded no radio detections. Here we show that the prototypical young CCO 1E 1207.4–5209 is in fact a faint radio pulsar rotating at the 0.4s X-ray period. Analysis of its polarization indicates that the radio beam intersects our line of sight near the magnetic pole, affirming its radio faintness’ being intrinsic. Once its supernova remnant dissipates, this source would be misidentified as an apparently gigayear-old pulsar. The CCO's low radio flux density may explain why many supernova remnants lack detectable radio pulsars and suggests a hidden population of young, slowly rotating neutron stars. Physical sciences/Astronomy and planetary science/Astronomy and astrophysics/Compact astrophysical objects Physical sciences/Astronomy and planetary science/Astronomy and astrophysics/Time-domain astronomy Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Review Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8706006","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":592338465,"identity":"cebfe8f2-1876-4aa4-a425-11d6f2feba1c","order_by":0,"name":"Di Li","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA3klEQVRIiWNgGAWjYDCCw8wNBz4wMPCAERAwNhDWwthwcEYCSVoOMDYw8ySAWMRq4TvO2HjY9kedjDn/2mMSPxhsZDccYH72AJ8WSaDDDuckHOaxnPEuTbKHIc14wwE2cwN8WgwgWg7wGNw4YybBw3A4ccMBHjYJglosEurAWiT/MPwnUgtDAjOPwfkeM2kehgOEtYD8crAn7TDQFh5jaxmDZOOZh9nM8GrhO3/48IcfNnX2BufPGN58U2En23e8+RleLQggkQByJxAzE6ceCPgPEK10FIyCUTAKRhgAAKngTDOSX6CDAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC","orcid":"https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3010-7661","institution":"Tsinghua University; 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