NASA and JAXA join forces to launch brand new mission 'XRISM' in August
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A brand new satellite to study the universe in x-ray light is set to be launched in August.
NASA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) have collaborated to create the XRISM satellite, which stands for X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (pronounced "crism").
On August 25, 2023, the satellite will launch from Japan's Tanegashima Space Center. It will fly in a low-Earth orbit at a height of 550 kilometers.
Our next JAXA collab is XRISM! Launching this year, XRISM will help us learn about some of the universe's most extreme environments, like the space around black holes! The spacecraft will measure the X-rays coming off hot gas just before it passes the point of no return. pic.twitter.com/czKgQObx5p
— NASA Universe (@NASAUniverse) July 10, 2023
Once in orbit, it will unlock the secrets of black holes, galaxy clusters, supernovae, and other energetic phenomena like active galactic nuclei.
Furthermore, this specialized satellite allows us to measure the chemical elements that cosmic objects are composed of, which might considerably fill in the gaps in our understanding of the universe’s evolution.
“The spectra XRISM collects will be the most detailed we’ve ever seen for some of the phenomena we’ll observe,” said Brian Williams, NASA’s XRISM project scientist at Goddard, in a NASA release.
Williams added: “The mission will provide us with insights into some of the most difficult places to study, like the internal structures of neutron stars and near-light-speed particle jets powered by black holes in active galaxies.”
The satellite hosts two advanced science instruments
The satellite's "Resolve" instrument is an X-ray microcalorimeter spectrometer.
According to NASA, this instrument can easily measure minute temperature changes caused by an X-ray falling on its 6-by-6-pixel detector. The detector must be chilled to minus 460 Fahrenheit (minus 270 Celsius) to collect data on such minute temperature changes and estimate the X-ray's energy.
This operational temperature is achieved through a multistage mechanical cooling mechanism within a refrigerator-sized tank containing liquid helium.
“Resolve will give us a new look into some of the universe’s most energetic objects, including black holes, clusters of galaxies, and the aftermath of stellar explosions, said Richard Kelley, NASA’s XRISM principal investigator at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.
Furthermore, by recording thousands of X-rays released by cosmic objects, it can generate high-resolution spectra of them. Experts may utilize this spectrum data to learn more about cosmic objects' physical states, movements, and compositions.
“Spectra are measurements of light’s intensity over a range of energies. Prisms spread visible light into its different energies, which we know better as the colors of the rainbow. Scientists used prisms in early spectrometers to look for spectral lines, which occur when atoms or molecules absorb or emit energy,” explained NASA.
A wide-field X-ray imager dubbed Xtend, developed by JAXA, is also onboard the satellite. This equipment was created primarily to allow for imaging large fields of view.
This instrument provides XRISM an observing area of 60 percent larger than the average size of the full Moon.
The mission is expected to last three years, depending on the helium levels in the cooling tanks.
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