Monitoring the Vela Pulsar with a Phased Array Feed (PAF) Receiver

Abstract

We have observed the Vela pulsar for 1 year using a Phased Array Feed (PAF) receiver on the 12-m antenna of the Parkes Test-Bed Facility (PTF). These observations have allowed us to investigate the stability of the PAF beam weights over time, to demonstrate that pulsars can be timed over long periods using PAF technology and to detect and study the most recent glitch event that occurred on 12 December 2016. The beam weights are shown to be stable to 1% on time scales on the order of three weeks.