Visualization of the Xrism X-Ray Telescope. NASA image
What interesting things can be seen from the X-rays of the universe?
One thing is certain: those seeking a true cosmic spectacle cannot ignore X-ray observations. Most of the energetic phenomena in the universe emit X-rays, said astronomer Elisa Costantini, who co-developed the instrument for the new telescope from the Dutch Institute of Space Research Srön.
You have to think about very hot gas, like gas near black holes, or in giant galaxy clusters. Other space telescopes, such as the James Webb and Hubble, see only galaxies, while Xrism only sees hot gas in and around them.
About the Author
Georg van Hall writes for De Volkskrant on astronomy, physics and space travel. He has published books on everything from the universe to the smallest and most basic elements of reality.
The telescope’s findings could contribute to solving many cosmic mysteries: how galaxies cluster together, for example why galactic winds blow inside galaxies, or how stars at the end of their lives eject material from their interiors when they explode.
Costantini himself researched gas from giant black holes. Even though these cosmic monsters ruthlessly consumed almost everything that was entangled in their nets due to gravity, the need for those monsters also disappeared. This occurs in the huge streams of matter that pour into the universe at dizzying speeds.
In other words, black holes are chaotic eater. But how exactly it works – what is the underlying mechanism, and what is its structure – is still unknown. “These are all questions this telescope can answer,” he said.
There are too many space telescopes hanging above the earth. What should Xrism add?
“The research you can do with these telescopes is not possible with older telescopes,” says Costantini. For example, Europe’s XMM-Newton X-ray satellite is still active, but is less sensitive to high-energy X-rays. “If you want to study supermassive black holes or galaxy clusters, you need high-energy resolution.”
Meanwhile, astronomers are working on a successor to Xrism. The European Athena Space Telescope is scheduled to launch in the next decade. “It’s going to be much more sensitive and have a much higher resolution.” So you can capture X-rays with more pixels than any kind of object in the universe.
The telescope turns off at night from Sunday to Monday. Could things get any worse?
It’s only natural that anyone who has been working on musical instruments for years – Xrism has been developing them for more than seven years – feels a little nervous when placed on a rocket mount filled with highly flammable rocket fluid. “Launching is by definition dangerous,” Costantini said. “So, it’s definitely going to be interesting.”
Due to bad weather, Xrism’s departure was postponed twice a day at the last minute. But if Monday night’s departure on the Japan Space Agency’s H-IIA “JAXA” rocket continues without issue, the operations phase will begin. This takes about three months. “During that time we will check if everything is working,” Costantini said.
When can we expect the first scientific results?
And when the telescope appeared to be working properly after three months, what astronomers call “first light” occurred: a stunning image that proved the telescope’s capabilities.
“Researchers will then work on it on a larger scale,” Costantini said. XRism is basically a tool made in Japan, but the US NASA and European Space Agency also contributed to its development. Sron supplies two components to the Netherlands: a filter wheel, in collaboration with the University of Geneva, which astronomers can use to rotate the filter in front of the camera and remove unwanted light wavelengths from images, and X-rays. the source, which was developed in collaboration with Photonis, is calibrated by the detector.
“Thanks to the contribution, the Netherlands has been granted guaranteed access to the first measurement data from this instrument. I’m sure this telescope will yield a lot of interesting discoveries.
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2023-08-26 08:21:21
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