Scientists Finally Crack the Mystery of the Crab Pulsar’s “Zebra Stripes” After 20 Years

A mysterious striped signal from the Crab Pulsar may finally be explained by a delicate balance between plasma effects and gravitational lensing. For more than 20 years, astronomers have been trying to explain a striking pattern in radio waves coming from the Crab Pulsar. The signal contains bright, evenly spaced stripes that stand out sharply [...]