Mar 05, 2024
X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM) satellite enters nominal phase, with release of early scientific observation data
Keyword:RESEARCH
OBJECTIVE.
Rikkyo University researchers comprising Senior Specially Appointed Professor Shunji Kitamoto, Associate Professor Shinya Yamada, and Assistant Professor Makoto Sawada of the Department of Physics, College of Science, and graduate students in physics have joined an international team to jointly develop a soft X-ray spectrometer, called Resolve, for the use onboard the XRISM satellite. The team was formed by Japan (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, and others), the United States (NASA, LLNL, and others), and the Netherlands (SRON).
The center of the Perseus cluster of galaxies obtained with the soft X-ray spectrometer (Resolve)
The precise X-ray spectra from Resolve enables to precisely measure the temperature and velocity of the plasma, thereby revealing the distribution and motion of dark matter, which plays an important role in the dynamical evolution of the universe. This data is expected to reveal how clusters of galaxies have formed and how they will evolve.
Figure 1.
(Credit: JAXA/NASA/CXC*/IoA**/A.Fabian et al./NRAO/VLA/G. Taylor/ESA/Hubble Heritage (STScI/AURA) /Univ. of Cambridge) * Chandra X-ray Center ** the Institute of Astronomy in Cambridge, UK
Image of the supernova remnant SN 1006 obtained with the soft X-ray imager (Xtend)
Figure 2.
(Credit: X-ray: JAXA/Optical: DSS*** ) ***The Digitized Sky Survey
The supernova remnant SN 1006 has an apparent size about the same as the full moon and a visual apparent diameter of about 30 arc minutes. Thanks to Xtend’s wide field of view, the object fit entirely in the image taken. This data will allow a detailed study of the abundance of elements created by the fusion reaction during the explosion, as well as how the remnant is expanding.
Future observation results
Supplemental information
Note 2: A supernova is a very luminous celestial event resulting from a violent explosion originating from a massive star or white dwarf. SN 1006 is thought to have resulted from an explosion of a white dwarf. A white dwarf is a dense remnant left behind after a Sun-like star ends its life. When a white dwarf forms a binary star system with another star, matter from the white dwarf’s companion star accretes to the white dwarf, triggering runaway nuclear fusion within the white dwarf. The energy from the fusion causes the entire white dwarf to explode.
Note 3: JAXA website for researchers