What are some major characteristics of a pulsar?
Besides being a neutron star (small size, solar mass of material, mostly neutrons, large density — like an atomic nucleus —, strong magnetic field, and fast rotation), one can add that pulsars slow in their rotation rates as they age. The rotation energy is lost to the surrounding medium (the pulsar stirs up the surrounding medium via electromagnetic effects). However, the pulsars typically slow down at a very slow rate — they are therefore very accurate clocks!
