The XRISM mission (for X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission) should finally reach the vacuum of space on Thursday, September 7, 2023. Its main objective is based on the observation of the most energetic objects and events in the universe. This telescope, developed by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (Jaxa) and NASA, also in partnership with the European Space Agency (ESA), specializes in X-rays emitted by the most violent cosmic events and the darkest regions. hottest in the cosmos.
“X-ray astronomy allows us to study the most energetic phenomena in the universe. It holds the key to answering important questions in modern astrophysics: how the largest structures evolve, how the matter of which we are ultimately composed was distributed throughout the cosmos, and how galaxies are shaped by massive black holes in their center”explains Matteo Guainazzi, scientific manager of the XRISM project at ESA in a press release.
Invisible to our eyes, the gas emitting X-rays (a high-frequency electromagnetic phenomenon made up of photons), which is found inside and between galaxies, can deliver a lot of information. These X-rays are emitted during the most energetic explosions and the hottest places in the universe. This includes the gas that envelops the biggest building blocks of the cosmos: galaxy clusters.
XRISM must be able to detect these X-rays in order to obtain data on the formation and evolution of the universe. “The mission will measure X-rays emitted by incredibly dense objects, such as active supermassive black holes, which sit at the center of some galaxies. This will help us understand how these objects distort the surrounding spacetime, and to what extent they influence their host galaxy through ‘winds’ of particles ejected at near-speeds of light.”explains the ESA again.
This launch will be broadcast on the Jaxa YouTube channel[/link] at 1:42 a.m. (French time), Thursday, September 7. The mission was originally scheduled to launch on August 26, but has been postponed several times due to unfavorable weather conditions.