SIMBAD references

Gravitational scattering events, in which the path of an interstellar object is deflected by a pulsar or the solar system, give rise to reflex motion that can potentially be detected using pulsar timing. We determine the form of the timing signal expected from a gravitational scattering event, which is ramp-like and resembles the signal produced by a glitch or a gravitational wave burst with memory (BWM), and investigate the prospects for detecting such a signal using a pulsar timing array. The level of timing precision currently achieved for some millisecond pulsars makes it possible to detect objects as small as 10^–10 M_☉, less than the mass of the dwarf planet Ceres, at impact parameters as large as 1au. The signals produced by gravitational scattering could provide independent constraints on models of dark matter involving asteroid-mass objects or subhalos, and should be considered as potential false positives in searches for BWMs.