Lately, the eROSITA (prolonged Roentgen Survey with an Imaging Telescope Array) x-ray telescope, an instrument designed by a crew of researchers at Max-Planck-Institut für Extraterrestrische Physik (MPE), has received notice amongst astronomers. The instrument performs an all-sky study in the x-ray vitality band of .two-eight kilo electron volts aboard the Spectrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG) satellite that was introduced in 2019 from the Baikonur cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
“The eROSITA has been designed to analyze the massive-scale composition of the universe and take a look at cosmological styles, such as darkish vitality, by detecting galaxy clusters with redshifts higher than 1, corresponding to a cosmological growth quicker than the pace of mild,” explained Dr. Norbert Meidinger from MPE, a aspect of the crew that designed the instrument. “We hope eROSITA to revolutionize our knowing of the evolution of supermassive black holes.” The specifics of the developmental operate have been published in SPIE’s Journal of Astronomical Telescopes, Devices, and Methods (JATIS).
eROSITA is not 1 telescope, but an array of seven similar, co-aligned telescopes, with every single 1 composed of a mirror process and a focal-airplane digicam. The digicam assembly, in change, is composed of the digicam head, digicam electronics, and filter wheel. The digicam head is created up of the detector and its housing, a proton shield, and a heat pipe for detector cooling. The digicam electronics consist of offer, manage, and information acquisition electronics for detector operation. The filter wheel is mounted higher than the digicam head and has 4 positions such as an optical and UV blocking filter to reduce signal sounds, a radioactive x-ray resource for calibration, and a shut posture that makes it possible for instrumental track record measurements.
“It’s interesting to read through about these x-ray cameras that are in orbit and enabling a broad established of scientific investigations on a big astrophysics mission,” states Megan Eckart of Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, Usa, who is the deputy editor of JATIS. “Dr. Meidinger and his crew provide a obvious description of the components development and floor testing, and wrap up the paper with a treat: first-mild photos from eROSITA and an assessment of onboard functionality. Astrophysicists all-around the planet will assess information from these cameras for yrs to appear.”
The eROSITA telescope is properly on its way to turning into a game changer for x-ray astronomy.
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