Neutron stars are among the most fascinating astronomical objects in the universe.
Born in the imploding core of a supernova, they provide a unique class of stellar objects with properties that make them nearly ideal probes for investigating a wide variety of physical problems. Currently, nearly 800 neutron stars are known as rotation-powered pulsars. The close link between the thermal evolution of neutron stars and the physical characteristics of neutron star material at super-nuclear densities provides an important starting point for the empirical study of matter at extreme energies and baryon densities.