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A massive detector in China will try to find a supernova before it happens
https://www.popsci.com/science/juno-neu … supernova/
Ghostly particles can give advance warning that a star is about to explode.
Trillions of particles from distant stars and galaxies are streaming through your body every second—you just can’t feel them. These ghost-like particles are called neutrinos. Although the universe spits them out constantly, these objects barely interact with matter—they can even slip through humanity’s toughest barriers, such as steel or lead walls.
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Why the Roman Space Telescope will study the flickering lights of the Milky Way
https://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Why_ … y_999.html
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ESA Euclid's first images: the dazzling edge of darkness
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The First Color Pictures From Euclid
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small satellite and an optical Ritchey–Chrétien telescope with an aperture of 30 cm, about 12 inches its about the size as amateur telescopes however it is designed to survive in space.
ESA’s Cheops mission uncovers rare star system 100 light-years away from Earth
https://www.euronews.com/next/2023/11/2 … years-away
Helps Reveal Rare Six-planet System
https://www.barrons.com/news/esa-s-cheo … m-7f0adb4b
old vid
'Preparing CHEOPS'
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vkz0wjTp2UA
Last edited by Mars_B4_Moon (2023-11-29 12:28:10)
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Ariel moves from drawing board to construction phase
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This post is about a "telescope" for gamma rays that is quite different from the usual concept of a telescope.
https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/technolo … ddd&ei=116
A team of researchers in Japan performed an interesting balloon-borne experiment in 2018 during which they tried to record gamma-ray activity using a stack of photographic films and a star camera.
They recently published the results of their experiment and it turns out that their balloon-borne device is probably one of the most powerful gamma-ray telescopes, capturing gamma-ray activity at 40 times higher resolution than standard gamma-ray telescopes.
Using the same device, the researchers were also able to produce the sharpest and most accurate image of the Vela pulsar, a fast-spinning magnetized neutron star located 1000 light years away from Earth.
Vela pulsar is so densely packed that if you take out one tablespoon of its matter, it will weigh the same as Mount Everest. The new telescope could help scientists study many objects like the Vela pulsar in detail.
However, the most fascinating thing about the balloon-borne device is that it takes its inspiration from pancakes.
Significance of gamma-rays
Everything visible to us in the universe is not everything the universe possesses. We can only see objects that emit light in the visible spectrum.
However, many celestial objects only emit light in the form of gamma rays, radio waves, X-rays, UV radiation, and more.
This is why scientists need special telescopes to capture these light rays and study celestial objects that would otherwise remain invisible to them.
Gamma rays have the highest energy among all electromagnetic radiations. They are emitted by the most powerful celestial objects such as pulsars, matter surrounding a black hole, and neutron stars,
They are also emitted during cosmic events characterized by high-energy releases. For example, supernova explosions, collisions between two celestial objects, and blazars (giant galactic nuclei with black holes at their centers).All such objects and events play an important role in shaping our universe, and they can mainly be studied by observing their gamma-ray activity.
However, it’s highly challenging for astronomers to record gamma rays because they have incredibly short wavelengths as compared to any other electromagnetic waves.
“They don't interact with matter in the same way as other forms of light and thus can't be deflected with lenses or detected by standard sensors,” the researchers noted.
“Thus, there is a gap in our ability to detect the light coming from fascinating stellar objects such as supernovae and their remnants.”
Detecting gamma-rays using new telescope
Before digital cameras became a reality, photographs were captured using cameras that used emulsion films.
In fact, photographic emulsion films were the first material that scientists employed to detect radioactivity. These films have high sensitivity and are also great at tracing gamma-rays, according to the study's authors.
This is why they used the film material in their telescope design. However, instead of using a single film, they stacked multiple photographic films together.
“The idea was to stack up a few of them to accurately capture the trajectory of the particles that the gamma-ray produces on impact, just like a single pancake may capture where you poke a straw into it, but it takes a whole stack to record the straw's direction” the researchers explained.
They installed this setup on an observation balloon along with a set of star cameras (special cameras used to observe constellations and star patterns) and a device that caused back-and-forth movement of the stacked films at different speeds.
The balloon was allowed to go up to 40 km in height. However, at such distances, winds disturbed the orientation of the balloon.
The cameras solved this issue by recording the change in the direction of the setup concerning the movement of starts at any point in time.
Meanwhile, scientists were able to accurately time gamma-ray activity and match it with camera footage by comparing the displacement of moving films.
Using the telescope, they captured an image of the Vela pulsar and traced several other gamma-ray events.
“We captured a total of several trillion tracks with an accuracy of 1/10,000 millimeters. By adding time information and combining it with attitude monitoring information, we were able to determine ‘when’ and ‘where’ the events originated with such precision that the resulting resolution was more than 40 times higher than that of conventional gamma-ray telescopes," said Aoki Shigeki, one of the study authors and a professor at Japan’s Kobe University.
Device opens new possibilities
The utility of the proposed telescope goes beyond capturing gamma rays. The study authors suggest that it might enable them to trace many other waves in the electromagnetic spectrum that have never been recorded before.
Moreover, the pancake-inspired device may also help them capture more details within the gamma-ray frequency band.
Using the new telescope, “We can attempt to contribute to many areas of astrophysics, and in particular to open up gamma-ray telescopy to 'multi-messenger astronomy' where simultaneous measurements of the same event captured through different techniques are required,” the researchers emphasized.
However, whether the telescope will fulfill all these expectations is yet to be tested.
The study is published in The Astrophysical Journal.
(th)
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LiteBIRD a Japan satellite for the studies of B-mode polarization and cosmic background Radiation Detection, a planned JAXA small space observatory that aims to detect the footprint of the primordial gravitational wave on the CMB
https://www.spiedigitallibrary.org/conf … .short#_=_
I don't see much from Russia, I know there is sanctions since the invasion of Ukraine but Strange how little the Russians / Roscosmos have done since the Soviet times maybe Putin truly is sending the entire of Russia on a backward path.
AstroSat-2 would be India's second dedicated multi-wavelength space telescope, the first Astrosat in 2015
https://www.thehindu.com/sci-tech/scien … 697707.ece
Xuntian from China it will first link to the Chinese Space Station and then go into orbit LEO and observe ultraviolet, visible, infrared. Also known as ' The Chinese Space Survey Telescope or CSST'
https://www.cjss.ac.cn/cn/article/doi/1 … 22.04.yg29
Dark Universe Observatory (DUO) is a planned NASA space-based telescope. It will conduct observations of galaxy clusters on the X-ray range with the intent of finding data related to both dark matter and energy
https://web.archive.org/web/20041205073 … index.html
' This mysterious energy fills the Universe, and profoundly affects its fate, yet we know next to nothing about it.'
an update on Gaia
Gaia's decade of discoveries: unravelling the intricacies of our galaxy
https://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Gaia … y_999.html
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Roman's spare Solar Array Sun Shield panels have been aligned and installed to the Outer Barrel Assembly simulator.
These panels are used for testing to ensure the design will withstand launch and space. The solar panels will serve as the observatory's power source.
https://twitter.com/NASARoman/status/17 … 0617724085
Observatory telescope removed from Mauna Kea
https://www.staradvertiser.com/2023/12/ … mauna-kea/
Hawaii's highest peak is caught in a spiritual tug of war between astronomers and Native Hawaiians
https://www.euronews.com/next/2023/12/1 … -native-ha
"The US has no better site in any of the 50 states than Mauna Kea,” said Doug Simons, Director at the University of Hawaii Institute for Astronomy.
In 1968, Hawaii’s Land Use Commission 1968 designated the summit of Mauna Kea as a science reserve.
“Ironically, that's the most sacred space. That's Kukahauula [Snow God of Mauna Kea], that's where Poliahu (the snow goddess) lives,” said Shane Palacat-Nelsen, a cultural consultant at the University of Hawaii.
Last edited by Mars_B4_Moon (2024-01-04 16:16:16)
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China launches “lobster eye” Einstein Probe to unveil mysteries of X-ray universe
https://spacenews.com/china-launches-lo … -universe/
The Einstein Probe (EP) is part of growing Chinese strategic space science efforts. The spacecraft will spend at least three years observing distant, violent interactions such as tidal disruption events—in which stars are pulled apart by supermassive black holes—supernovae, and detect and localize the high-energy, electromagnetic counterparts to gravitational wave events.
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Euclid Begins its 6-Year Survey of the Dark Universe
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Two giant US telescopes threatened by funding cap: Thirty Meter Telescope and Giant Magellan Telescope might need to compete for survival in face of federal spending limit.
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Thirty Meter Telescope risks losing billions in funding from the National Science Foundation
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Gaia maps largest ever collection of quasars in space and time
https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Imag … e_and_time
TRAPPIST-1 the cool red dwarf star with seven known exoplanets, observed from the La Silla Observatory in Chile the observatory is operated by the European Southern Observatory (ESO)and other telescopes, durations of their orbits have ratios of 8:5, 5:3, 3:2, 3:2, 4:3 and 3:2 between neighbouring planet pairs, and each set of three is in a Laplace resonance.
https://www.eso.org/public/teles-instr/lasilla/
Athena is an X-ray mission selected by European Space Agency (ESA) within its Cosmic Vision program
Wide Field Imager Overview
https://www.mpe.mpg.de/ATHENA-WFI/
The WFI consortium is led by the Max Planck Institute for extraterrestrial Physics (Germany) in collaboration with partners in Germany, the United Kingdom, Poland, Austria, Czech Republic, Denmark, Italy, France, the United States, Switzerland, Portugal, and Greece.
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Biosignature detection
NASA's HABEX or Habitable Exoplanet Observatory (HabEx) is a conceptual space-based 4-m telescope and Large Ultraviolet/Optical/Infrared Surveyor LUVOIR Mission Concept
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The pieces are coming together! Roman's propulsion tanks have been integrated into the spacecraft's primary structure in the NASAGoddard clean room.
https://twitter.com/NASARoman/status/17 … 3039330396
The 4 tanks will carry almost 300 gallons of hydrazine fuel – enough to support 10+ years of observations
A polarised view of our black hole - ESO News
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2Xi0U5nKAo
Documents
https://web.archive.org/web/20201215235 … /documents
Committees
Planetary Science Advisory Committee
Strategic Planning
Planetary Missions Concept Studies Reports
in politics
a world economy slowing and budget cuts coming?
reported comments from Astrophysics Advisory Committee, or APAC
A space telescope’s cloudy future
https://www.thespacereview.com/article/4769/1
At the APAC meeting, both Fox and Clampin said they were committed not just to keeping Chandra and Hubble going at reduced spending levels but also to the senior review process that astronomers worry is being short-circuited by the upcoming review.
“We are trying to find cheaper ways to operate Chandra and Hubble so that they are consistent with the budget allocation that we have,” Clampin said. “The decision was done this way because of the very significant impact to the budget that had to be dealt with on a short time scale. We didn’t have time to wait two years,” when the next regular senior review is scheduled.
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X-Ray Telescope science is dying in the West,
A NASA telescope unlocked the mysteries of black holes. Now it's on the chopping block.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nat … 106444007/
The Chandra X-ray Observatory, one of four great space telescopes NASA launched in the 1990s, revolutionized our understanding of the universe from the moment it first began recording
A “slow bleed” of funding threatens NASA’s science flagships
https://spacenews.com/a-slow-bleed-of-f … flagships/
In Europe there were political issues with communication after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, another international joint mission 'Russian-German Spektr-RG'
The operations of eROSITA were suspended on 26 February 2022 after the Russian invasion into Ukraine upon request from Germany. At the time, eROSITA had completed four of its planned eight full-sky surveys
https://www.mpe.mpg.de/7856215/news20220303
For a while they were a huge thing making great discoveries. the range X-rays has a huge span in wavelength (~8 nm - 8 pm), frequency (~50 PHz - 50 EHz) and energy (~0.12 - 120 keV). In terms of temperature, 1 eV = 11,604 K, X-rays 0.12 to 120 keV correspond to 1.39 × 106 to 1.39 × 109 K. From 10 to 0.1 nanometers (nm) about 0.12 to 12 keV they are classified as soft X-rays, and from 0.1 nm to 0.01 nm about 12 to 120 keV as hard X-rays, distinction between X-rays and gamma rays has changed in recent decades while Closer to the visible range of the electromagnetic spectrum is the ultraviolet
The loss of X-Ray Telescopes and Science now moving to Asia?
The Chinese Space Variable Objects Monitor observatory scheduled for launch will be directed at studying the explosions of massive stars and analysis of gamma-ray bursts
X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission XRISM, NASA has some influence here with the Japanese, an X-ray space telescope mission of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency JAXA
Aditya-L1 Sanskrit a spacecraft designed and developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation ISRO
X-ray Polarimeter Satellite XPoSat an Indian Space Research Organisation or ISRO manufactured space observatory to study polarisation of cosmic X-rays.
Hard X-ray Modulation Telescope (HXMT) also known as Insight a Chinese X-ray space observatory, launched in June 2017 to observe black holes, neutron stars, active galactic nuclei and other phenomena
China launches 'Einstein Probe' with x-ray tech inspired by lobster eye
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_lWRDQqo_ic
Lobster-Eye X-ray Satellite was launched on 25 July 2020 by CNSA making it is the first in-orbit telescope to utilize the lobster-eye imaging technology of ultra-large field of view imaging to search for dark matter signals in the x-ray energy range
https://copernical.com/news-public/item … 7-15-55-20
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NASA Planning a Spacewalk to Fix an older Busted X-ray Telescope
Astronauts To Patch Up NASA’s NICER Telescope
https://science.nasa.gov/missions/stati … telescope/
NASA is planning to repair NICER (Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer), an X-ray telescope on the International Space Station, during a spacewalk later this year. It will be the fourth science observatory in orbit serviced by astronauts.
In May 2023, scientists discovered that NICER had developed a “light leak.” Unwanted sunlight was entering the instrument and reaching the telescope’s sensitive detectors. While the team took immediate steps to mitigate the impact on observations, they also began thinking about a potential repair.
“The sunlight interferes with NICER’s ability to collect viable X-ray measurements during the station’s daytime,” said Zaven Arzoumanian, NICER’s science lead at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. “Nighttime observations are unaffected, and the telescope continues to produce incredible science. Hundreds of published papers have used NICER since the mission began. Blocking some of the light leaking in would allow us to return to more normal operations around the clock.”
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