Exosat - the new extrasolar X-ray observatory.
Abstract
Exosat, the ESA satellite for the direct-pointing and lunar-occultation observation of X-ray sources beyond the solar system, is characterized. Exosat was launched into a highly eccentric orbit (apogee 200,000 km, perigee 500 km) almost perpendicular to that of the moon on May 26, 1983. The instrumentation includes two low-energy imaging telescopes (LEIT) with Wolter I X-ray optics (for the 0.04-2 keV energy range), a medium-energy experiment using Ar/CO2 and Xe/CO2 detectors (for 1.5-50 keV), a Xe/He gas scintillation spectrometer (GSPC) (covering 2-80 keV), and a reprogrammable onboard data-processing computer. Exosat is capable of observing an object (in the direct-pointing mode) for up to 80 hours and of locating sources to within at least 10 arcsec with the LEIT and about 2 arcsec with GSPC. The past development of extrasolar-X-ray-astronomy satellites and the goals of the Exosat mission are discussed.
- Publication:
-
Journal of the British Interplanetary Society
- Pub Date:
- August 1983
- Bibcode:
- 1983JBIS...36..363H
- Keywords:
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- Exosat Satellite;
- Spaceborne Astronomy;
- X Ray Astronomy;
- Lunar Occultation;
- Scintillation Counters;
- Spaceborne Telescopes;
- X Ray Telescopes;
- Launch Vehicles and Space Vehicles;
- Artificial Satellites:X-Ray Astronomy;
- X-Ray Astronomy:Artificial Satellites