Neutron stars are fascinating as they can spin around at 43,000 times per minute and have densities that are hard to imagine such as a teaspoon weighing billions of tons.  Here is some info on a breakthrough in studying these universal phenomenon and their distances:

In late 2013, when the neutron star at the heart of one of our galaxy’s oddest supernovae gave off a massive burst of X-rays, the resulting echoes—created when the X-rays bounced off clouds of dust in interstellar space—yielded a surprising new measuring stick for astronomers.

Circinus X-1 is a freak of the Milky Way. Located in the plane of the galaxy, Circinus X-1 is the glowing husk of a binary star system that exploded a mere 2,500 years ago. The system consists of a nebula and a neutron star, the incredibly dense collapsed core of the exploded star, still in the orbital embrace of its companion star.

Let’s find out more about getting clues using this new method and check out the video on page 2

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