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: http://hea-www.harvard.edu/CHAMP/EDUCATION/PUBLIC/bkgd.html
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Background Information
In order to fully understand ChaMP you need to know some information regarding some of the
objects that our highly skilled scientists study
and the instruments that they use.
~ Why does X-ray
astronomy require satellite telescopes?
Our atmosphere blocks out radiation that can potentially be harmful to humans.
Therefore it blocks out or absorbs X-ray light. That is why
scientists use space based satellites to record and observe data from X-ray sources.
~ What other wavelengths require space based telescopes?
Not only X-rays require space based telescopes. In order to observe
Gamma-ray sources, Infared sources, and
Ultraviolet sources the best way to get complete and efficent results
is to observe these wavelengths in space. That way the atmosphere is not
clouding or fuzzing your view.
Picture From the book "Explorations", by Thomas Arny, © McGraw-Hill
~ What are some of the other
satellite telescopes
and what wavelength or energy do they observe??
RXTE:Rossi X-ray Timing
Explorer
Launched on December 30th 1995 this satellite studies
time variability of X-rays emissions. It measures the
energy (in KeVs) of x-rays on very short time scales of
fractions of seconds.
It detected post X-ray
glows from Gamma-ray bursts and soft X-rays from Cyngus X-1.
![](ICONS/rxte.jpg)
Beppo Sax:
(no longer operational)
Put into orbit around the earth on April 30, 1996,
the Beppo Sax satellite is a major part of the Italian
Space Program. It primarily observes X-ray sources and
has a moderate imaging capabilities.
Alexis:
Array of Low Energy X-ray Imaging Sensors
Put into orbit in April of 1993 Alexis measures
and surveys the diffuse soft X-ray of the sky
and looks at known EUV ( Extreme Ultraviolet )
sources.
![](ICONS/ALEXIS.gif)
XMM-Newton
Put into orbit in December of 1999.
~ What is Chandra and who is it named after?
Chandra is an X-ray satellite that was
launched on July 23, 1999. It finds X-ray sources that can be hundreds of light years
away and puts those findings into pictures. Chandra will help astrophyscists solve the
mysteries of how the universe was formed, and what is in store for the future. Chandra was
named after the Indian-American Nobel laureate:
Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar
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~ What type of objects does it observe??
~ What can X-rays tell us about celestial objects that visual light cannot?
X-rays (because of their short wavelengths) , as opposed to visual light,
can penetrate through otherwise opaque objects
e.g. bones
X-rays can observe celestial objects that emit shorter wavelengths such
as galaxies, quasars, and black holes. Since
their wavelengths are shorter than visible light astronomers might not have
been able to see them in space.
![](ICONS/casA_xray.gif) |
![](ICONS/casA_color.gif) |
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X-ray image |
Optical Image |
![](ICONS/sun_xray.gif) |
![](ICONS/sun_white.jpg) |
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X-ray |
Optical light |
~ What is multiwavelength
astronomy? Why is it useful?
The constellation Orion at different wavelengths
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![](ICONS/orion_radio.gif) |
![](ICONS/orion_ir.gif) |
![](ICONS/orion_vis.gif) |
![](ICONS/orion_uv.jpg) |
![](ICONS/orion_xray.gif) |
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Radio Image |
Infared image |
Optical light(visible image) |
Ultraviolet image |
X-ray image |
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