Athena: ESA's mission to explore the Hot and Energetic Universe
Abstract
Athena, the Advanced Telescope for High ENergy Astrophysics, is the X-ray observatory mission selected by ESA to address the Hot and Energetic Universe science theme. It is the second Large mission within ESA’s Cosmic Vision program, and is due for launch in the early 2030s. Athena will reveal how hot baryons assemble into groups and clusters of galaxies, determine their chemical enrichment across cosmic time, measure their mechanical energy and characterise the missing baryons which are expected to reside in intergalactic filamentary structures. Athena will also find accreting supermassive black holes into the epoch of reionization, trace their growth even when in obscured environments, and show how they influence the evolution of galaxies and clusters through feedback processes. It will also have a fast target of opportunity observational capability, enabling studies of GRBs and other transient phenomena. As an observatory, Athena will offer vital information on high energy phenomena on all classes of astrophysical objects, from solar system bodies to the most distant objects known.Athena will consist of a single large-aperture grazing incidence X-ray telecope with 12m focal length and 5 arcsec HEW angular resolution, utilizing the novel Silicon Pore Optics technology developed in Europe. The focal plane contains two instruments. One is the Wide Field Imager (WFI) providing sensitive wide field imaging and spectroscopy and high count rate capability. The other is the X-ray Integral Field Unit (X-IFU) delivering spatially resolved high high resolution X-ray spectroscopy. This presentation will focus on recent progress in the mission's development.
- Publication:
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AAS/High Energy Astrophysics Division
- Pub Date:
- March 2019
- Bibcode:
- 2019HEAD...1730303N