A Decisive Legacy Observation of an Ultraluminous X-Ray Source
Abstract
This proposal requests funding to support the analysis of a deep Suzaku Cycle 7 observation of the ultraluminous X-ray source (ULX) Holmberg IX X-1. The observation is 500 ksec, priority A, and is being split into two long stares that will later be added. The deep exposure will be able to deliver some decisive information on the nature of this source: is it a super-Eddington stellar-mass black hole, or an intermediate- mass black hole? The nature of the soft X-ray flux, the presence of possible disk reflection, the presence or absence of any disk winds, and the presence or absence of any characteristic timescales will be revealed in this extraordinary stare. The funding requested is intended to support the analysis and publication of this extensive data set. This research addresses two NASA strategic science questions within astrophysics: (1) "How to matter, energy, space, and time behave under the extraordinarily diverse conditions of the cosmos?", and (2) "How did the universe originate and evolve to produce the galaxies, stars, and planets we see today?"
- Publication:
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NASA ADAP Proposal
- Pub Date:
- 2012
- Bibcode:
- 2012adap.prop...59M