Is pulsar B0656+14 a very nearby rotating radio transient?

The recently discovered RRAT sources are characterized by very bright radio bursts that, while being periodically related, occur infrequently. We find bursts with the same characteristics for the known pulsar B0656+14. These bursts represent pulses from the bright end of an extended smooth pulse-energy distribution and are shown to be unlike giant pulses, giant micropulses, or the pulses of normal pulsars. The extreme peak fluxes of the brightest of these pulses indicate that PSR B0656+14, were it not so near, could only have been discovered as an RRAT source. Longer observations of the RRATs may reveal that they, like PSR B0656+14, emit weaker emission in addition to the bursts. © 2006. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.