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Thehabitability of neutron star systems is the potential of planets and moons orbiting aneutron star to provide suitablehabitats forlife.[1] Of the roughly 3,000 neutron stars known, only a handful have sub-stellar companions. The most famous of these are the low-mass planets around the millisecond pulsarPSR B1257+12.
Habitability is defined conventionally by theequilibrium temperature of a planet, which is a function of the amount of incoming radiation; a planet is defined "habitable" if liquidwater can exist on its surface although even planets with little external energy can harbour underground life. Pulsars do not emit large quantities of radiation given their small size; thehabitable zone can easily end up lying so close to the star thattidal force effects destroy the planets. Also, it is often unclear how much radiation a given pulsar emits and how much of it can actually reach a hypothetical planet's surface; of the known pulsar planets, only those of PSR B1257+12 are close to the habitable zone and as of 2015, no known pulsar planet is likely to be habitable.
Ahabitable planet orbiting a neutron star must be between one and 10 times the mass of Earth. If a planet is lighter, its atmosphere will be lost. Its atmosphere must also be thick enough to convert the intenseX-ray radiation from the neutron star into heat on its surface, allowing it to have a temperature suitable for life.[1]
A magnetic field around a planet, amagnetosphere, if strong enough, could protect a planet from the strongsolar winds. This could preserve the planet's atmosphere for several billion years. Such a planet could have liquid water on its surface.[1]
A Dutch research team published an article on the subject in the journalAstronomy & Astrophysics in December 2017.[2][3]
According to a Dutch research team, a planet orbiting a neutron star may be surprisingly suitable for life. In other words, liquid water could exist on the planet's surface. The original text: Hollantilaisen tutkimusryhmän mukaan neutronitähteä kiertävä planeetta saattaa hämmästyttävää kyllä sopia elämälle. Toisin sanoen planeetan pinnalla voisi esiintyä nestemäistä vettä.
p. 9: It is thus possible to speculate that the wind could completely miss the planets orbiting around the pulsar because of a geometric misalignment of the orbital plane with respect to the ion current sheet or negative charge flow.
In the future, the astronomers would love to observe the pulsar in more detail and compare it with other pulsars. The ALMA telescope of the European Southern Observatory would be able to show dust discs around neutron stars.
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