The Origin and Evolution of The Great Debate

Extract

More than 25 years after the discovery of pulsars, and fifteen years since the first millisecond pulsar was found, we are still unravelling the connection between radio pulsars and the neutron stars in X-ray binaries. In particular, the high binary fraction amongst millisecond pulsars indicates a close relationship with the (low mass) X-ray binaries, and places a premium on the understanding of binary evolution. At the time of the Sydney conference, many issues relating to the evolutionary paths travelled by the millisecond pulsars were subject to controversy, with claims and direct counter-claims evident in the literature. In an attempt to clarify some of these questions, the organisers scheduled one morning of the conference for open debate on “The origin and evolution of millisecond pulsars”.