[{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BlogPosting","@id":"https:\/\/wiki.edu.vn\/en\/wiki40\/ixpe-wikipedia\/#BlogPosting","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/wiki.edu.vn\/en\/wiki40\/ixpe-wikipedia\/","headline":"IXPE – Wikipedia","name":"IXPE – Wikipedia","description":"NASA satellite of the Explorer program Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer, commonly known as IXPE or SMEX-14, is a space observatory","datePublished":"2017-01-25","dateModified":"2017-01-25","author":{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/wiki.edu.vn\/en\/wiki40\/author\/lordneo\/#Person","name":"lordneo","url":"https:\/\/wiki.edu.vn\/en\/wiki40\/author\/lordneo\/","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c9645c498c9701c88b89b8537773dd7c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/c9645c498c9701c88b89b8537773dd7c?s=96&d=mm&r=g","height":96,"width":96}},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Enzyklop\u00e4die","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/wiki.edu.vn\/wiki4\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/download.jpg","url":"https:\/\/wiki.edu.vn\/wiki4\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/download.jpg","width":600,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/4\/41\/Ixpe_009.jpg\/220px-Ixpe_009.jpg","url":"https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/4\/41\/Ixpe_009.jpg\/220px-Ixpe_009.jpg","height":"124","width":"220"},"url":"https:\/\/wiki.edu.vn\/en\/wiki40\/ixpe-wikipedia\/","about":["Wiki"],"wordCount":7215,"articleBody":"NASA satellite of the Explorer programImaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer, commonly known as IXPE or SMEX-14, is a space observatory with three identical telescopes designed to measure the polarization of cosmic X-rays of black holes, neutron stars, and pulsars.[6] The observatory, which was launched on 9\u00a0December 2021, is an international collaboration between NASA and the Italian Space Agency (ASI). It is part of NASA’s Explorers program, which designs low-cost spacecraft to study heliophysics and astrophysics.The mission will study exotic astronomical objects and permit mapping of the magnetic fields of black holes, neutron stars, pulsars, supernova remnants, magnetars, quasars, and active galactic nuclei. The high-energy X-ray radiation from these objects’ surrounding environment can be polarized\u00a0\u2013  oscillating in a particular direction. Studying the polarization of X-rays reveals the physics of these objects and can provide insights into the high-temperature environments where they are created.[7]Table of ContentsOverview[edit]Objectives[edit]Telescopes[edit]Principle[edit]Launch profile[edit]Operations[edit]Results[edit]Gallery[edit]See also[edit]References[edit]Overview[edit]  The IXPE mission was announced on 3\u00a0January 2017[6] and was launched on 9\u00a0December 2021.[3] The international collaboration was signed in June 2017,[1] when the Italian Space Agency (ASI) committed to provide the X-ray polarization detectors.[7] The estimated cost of the mission and its two-year operation is US$188\u00a0million (the launch cost is US$50.3\u00a0million).[8][7] The goal of the IXPE mission is to expand understanding of high-energy astrophysical processes and sources, in support of NASA’s first science objective in astrophysics: “Discover how the universe works”.[1] By obtaining X-ray polarimetry and polarimetric imaging of cosmic sources, IXPE addresses two specific science objectives: to determine the radiation processes and detailed properties of specific cosmic X-ray sources or categories of sources; and to explore general relativistic and quantum effects in extreme environments.[1][6]During IXPE’s two-year mission, it will study targets such as active galactic nuclei, quasars, pulsars, pulsar wind nebulae, magnetars, accreting X-ray binaries, supernova remnants, and the Galactic Center.[4]The spacecraft was built by Ball Aerospace & Technologies.[1] The principal investigator is Martin C.\u00a0Weisskopf of NASA Marshall Space Flight Center; he is the chief scientist for X-ray astronomy at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center and project scientist for the Chandra X-ray Observatory spacecraft.[7]Other partners include the McGill University, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Roma Tre University, Stanford University,[5]OHB Italia[9] and the University of Colorado Boulder.[10]Objectives[edit]The technical and science objectives include:[3]Improve polarization sensitivity by two orders of magnitude over the X-ray polarimeter aboard the Orbiting Solar Observatory 8Provide simultaneous spectral, spatial, and temporal measurementsDetermine the geometry and the emission mechanism of active galactic nuclei and microquasarsFind the magnetic field configuration in magnetars and determine the magnitude of the fieldFind the mechanism for X-ray production in pulsars (both isolated and accreting) and the geometryDetermine how particles are accelerated in pulsar wind nebulaTelescopes[edit]The space observatory features three identical telescopes designed to measure the polarization of cosmic X-rays.[6] The polarization-sensitive detector was invented and developed by Italian scientists of the Istituto Nazionale di AstroFisica (INAF) and the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare (INFN) and was refined over several years.[4][11][12]Telescope (\u00d73)Basic parametersWavelengthX-rayEnergy range2\u20138 keVField of view (FoV)>11\u2032Angular resolution\u226430\u2033Principle[edit]IXPE’s payload is a set of three identical imaging X-ray polarimetry systems mounted on a common optical bench and co-aligned with the pointing axis of the spacecraft.[1] Each system operates independently for redundancy and comprises a mirror module assembly that focuses X-rays onto a polarization-sensitive imaging detector developed in Italy.[1] The 4\u00a0m (13\u00a0ft) focal length is achieved using a deployable boom.The Gas Pixel Detectors (GPD) rely on the anisotropy of the emission direction of photoelectrons produced by polarized photons to gauge with high sensitivity the polarization state of X-rays interacting in a gaseous medium.[4] Position-dependent and energy-dependent polarization maps of such synchrotron-emitting sources will reveal the magnetic-field structure of the X-ray emitting regions. X-ray polarimetric imaging better indicates the magnetic structure in regions of strong electron acceleration. The system is capable to resolve point sources from surrounding nebular emission or from adjacent point sources.[4]Launch profile[edit]  IXPE was launched on 9 December 2021 on a SpaceX Falcon\u00a09 (B1061.5) from LC-39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The relatively small size and mass of the observatory falls well short of the normal capacity of SpaceX’s Falcon\u00a09 launch vehicle. However, Falcon\u00a09 had to work to get IXPE into the correct orbit because IXPE is designed to operate in an almost exactly equatorial orbit with a 0\u00b0 inclination. Launching from Cape Canaveral, which is located 28.5\u00b0 above the equator, it was physically impossible to launch directly into a 0.2\u00b0 equatorial orbit. Instead, the rocket needed to launch due east into a parking orbit and then perform a plane, or inclination, change once in space, as the spacecraft crossed the equator. For Falcon\u00a09, this meant that even the tiny 330\u00a0kg (730\u00a0lb) IXPE likely still represented about 20\u201330% of its maximum theoretical performance (1,500\u20132,000\u00a0kg (3,300\u20134,400\u00a0lb)) for such a mission profile, while the same launch vehicle is otherwise able to launch about 15,000\u00a0kg (33,000\u00a0lb) to the same 540\u00a0km (340\u00a0mi) orbit IXPE was targeting when no plane change is needed, while recovering the first stage booster.[13]IXPE is the first satellite dedicated to measuring the polarization of X-rays from a variety of cosmic sources, such as black holes and neutron stars. The orbit hugging the equator will minimize the X-ray instrument’s exposure to radiation in the South Atlantic Anomaly, the region where the inner Van Allen radiation belt comes closest to Earth’s surface.Operations[edit]IXPE is built to last for two years.[8] After that it may be retired and deorbited or given an extended mission.After launch and deployment of the IXPE spacecraft, NASA pointed the spacecraft at 1ES 1959+650, a black hole, and SMC X-1, a pulsar, for calibration. After that the spacecraft observed its first science target, Cassiopeia\u00a0A. A first-light image of Cassiopeia\u00a0A was released on 11\u00a0January 2022.[14] 30\u00a0targets are planned to be observed during IXPE’s first year.[14]IXPE communicates with Earth via a ground station in Malindi, Kenya. The ground station is owned and operated by the Italian Space Agency.[14]At present mission operations for IXPE are controlled by the Laboratory for Atmospheric and Space Physics (LASP).[15]Results[edit]In May 2022 the first study of IXPE hinted the possibility of vacuum birefringence on 4U 0142+61[16][17] and in August another study looked at Centaurus A measuring low polarization degree, suggesting that the X-ray emission is coming from a scattering process rather than arising directly from the accelerated particles of the jet.[18][19] In October 2022 it observed the gamma ray burst GRB 221009A, also known as the “Brightest of all time” (BOAT).[20][21]Gallery[edit]IXPE spacecraftDiagram of IXPE’s structureAnimation of the IXPE deployment processSee also[edit]References[edit]^ a b c d e f g “IXPE (Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer)”. eoportal.com. ESA. Retrieved 17 February 2019.^ “IXPE X-ray observatory completes commissioning, eyes Cassiopeia A for calibration”. NASASpaceFlight.com. 10 January 2022. Retrieved 11 January 2022.^ a b c “IXPE Home: Expanding the X-ray View of the Universe”. Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC). NASA. 7 September 2021. Retrieved 15 September 2021.  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.^ a b c d e Weisskopf, Martin C.; Ramsey, Brian; o’Dell, Stephen L.; Tennant, Allyn; Elsner, Ronald; Soffitta, Paolo; Bellazzini, Ronaldo; Costa, Enrico; Kolodziejczak, Jeffery; Kaspi, Victoria; Muleri, Fabio; Marshall, Herman; Matt, Giorgio; Romani, Roger (31 October 2016). “The Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE)”. Results in Physics. 6: 1179\u20131180. Bibcode:2016ResPh…6.1179W. doi:10.1016\/j.rinp.2016.10.021.^ a b “IXPE Fact Sheet” (PDF). NASA. 2017.  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.^ a b c d “NASA Selects Mission to Study Black Holes, Cosmic X-ray Mysteries”. NASA. 3 January 2017. Retrieved 6 December 2021.  This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.^ a b c d “NASA selects X-ray astronomy mission”. SpaceNews. 4 January 2017. Retrieved 9 December 2021.^ a b Clark, Stephen (8 July 2019). “SpaceX wins NASA contract to launch X-ray telescope on reused rocket”. Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 9 December 2021.^ “Advanced Observatory Design for the Imaging X-Ray Polarimeter Explorer (IXPE) Mission”. Space Foundation. 2018. Retrieved 10 December 2021.^ “Students operate $214M spacecraft. ‘It’s like what you see in the movies.’“. CU Boulder Today. 18 January 2022. Retrieved 2 August 2022.^ Costa, Enrico; Soffitta, Paolo; Bellazzini, Ronaldo; Brez, Alessandro; Lumb, Nicholas; Spandre, Gloria (2001). “An efficient photoelectric X-ray polarimeter for the study of black holes and neutron stars”. Nature. 411 (6838): 662\u2013665. arXiv:astro-ph\/0107486. Bibcode:2001Natur.411..662C. doi:10.1038\/35079508. PMID\u00a011395761. S2CID\u00a04348577.^ Bellazzini, R.; Spandre, G.; Minuti, M.; Baldini, L.; Brez, A.; Latronico, L.; Omodei, N.; Razzano, M.; Massai, M. M.; Pesce-Rollins, M.; Sgr\u00f2, C.; Costa, E.; Soffitta, P.; Sipila, H.; Lempinen, E. (2017). “A sealed Gas Pixel Detector for X-ray astronomy”. Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section A. 592 (2): 853\u2013858. arXiv:astro-ph\/0611512. Bibcode:2007NIMPA.579..853B. doi:10.1016\/j.nima.2007.05.304. S2CID\u00a0119036804.^ “SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket rolls out to launch pad with NASA X-ray telescope”. TESLARATI. 7 December 2021.^ a b c Mohon, Lee (11 January 2022). “NASA’s New IXPE Mission Begins Science Operations”. NASA. Retrieved 20 January 2022.^ “Quick Facts: Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE)”. LASP. Archived from the original on 28 May 2022. Retrieved 12 May 2022.^ Taverna, Roberto; Turolla, Roberto; Muleri, Fabio; Heyl, Jeremy; Zane, Silvia; Baldini, Luca; Caniulef, Denis Gonz\u00e1lez; Bachetti, Matteo; Rankin, John; Caiazzo, Ilaria; Di Lalla, Niccol\u00f2; Doroshenko, Victor; Errando, Manel; Gau, Ephraim; K\u0131rm\u0131z\u0131bayrak, Demet (18 May 2022). “Polarized x-rays from a magnetar”. Science. 378 (6620): 646\u2013650. arXiv:2205.08898. Bibcode:2022Sci…378..646T. doi:10.1126\/science.add0080. PMID\u00a036356124. S2CID\u00a0248863030.^ “X-ray polarisation probes extreme physics”. CERN Courier. 30 June 2022. Retrieved 15 August 2022.^ Ehlert, Steven R.; Ferrazzoli, Riccardo; Marinucci, Andrea; Marshall, Herman L.; Middei, Riccardo; Pacciani, Luigi; Perri, Matteo; Petrucci, Pierre-Olivier; Puccetti, Simonetta; Barnouin, Thibault; Bianchi, Stefano; Liodakis, Ioannis; Madejski, Grzegorz; Marin, Fr\u00e9d\u00e9ric; Marscher, Alan P. (1 August 2022). “Limits on X-Ray Polarization at the Core of Centaurus A as Observed with the Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer”. The Astrophysical Journal. 935 (2): 116. arXiv:2207.06625. Bibcode:2022ApJ…935..116E. doi:10.3847\/1538-4357\/ac8056. ISSN\u00a00004-637X. S2CID\u00a0250526704.^ “Probing a Bright Radio Galaxy with X-Rays”. AAS Nova. 26 August 2022. Retrieved 29 August 2022.^ Negro, Michela; Di Lalla, Niccol\u00f2; Omodei, Nicola; Veres, P\u00e9ter; Silvestri, Stefano; Manfreda, Alberto; Burns, Eric; Baldini, Luca; Costa, Enrico; Ehlert, Steven R.; Kennea, Jamie A.; Liodakis, Ioannis; Marshall, Herman L.; Mereghetti, Sandro; Middei, Riccardo (1 March 2023). “The IXPE View of GRB 221009A”. The Astrophysical Journal Letters. 946 (1): L21. doi:10.3847\/2041-8213\/acba17. ISSN\u00a02041-8205.^ Hensley, Kerry (29 March 2023). “Focusing on the Brightest Gamma-ray Burst of All Time”. AAS Nova. Retrieved 12 April 2023.MissionsProposalsGreen titles indicates active current missionsGrey titles indicates cancelled missionsItalics indicate missions yet to launchSymbol \u2020 indicates failure en route or before intended mission data returnedJanuaryT\u00fcrksat 5APICS 1, PICS 2, Q-PACE, TechEdSat-7Tiantong-1 03Starlink V1.0-L16 (60 satellites)Starlink v1.0 R1 (10 satellites), ION-SCV 002 (Flock-4s \u00d7 8, SpaceBEE \u00d7 12), Capella 3, Capella 4, ICEYE \u00d7 3, Hawk \u00d7 3, Astrocast \u00d7 5, Flock-4s \u00d7 40, Kepler \u00d7 8, Lemur-2 \u00d7 8, PTD-1, SpaceBEE \u00d7 24Yaogan 31-02 (3 satellites)FebruaryMarchAprilMayJuneFengyun 4BSpaceX CRS-22SXM-8USA-316, USA-317, USA-318Shenzhou 12USA-319 \/ GPS IIA-05Yaogan 30-09 (3 satellites)Kosmos 2550 \/ Pion-NKS \u21161Progress MS-17Brik-II, STORK-4, STORK-5Starlink V1.0-R2 (3 satellites), ION-SCV 003 (SPARTAN), SHERPA FX2 (Lynk 05, Astrocast \u00d7 5, Lemur-2 \u00d7 3, SpaceBEE \u00d7 12), SHERPA LTE1 (KSF1 \u00d7 4), Capella 5, ICEYE \u00d7 4, Hawk \u00d7 3, \u00d1uSat \u00d7 4, Lemur-2 \u00d7 3, LINCS A, LINCS B, SpaceBEE \u00d7 16, TROPICS PathfinderJulyAugustSeptemberOctoberNovemberDecemberLaunches are separated by dots (\u00a0\u2022 ), payloads by commas ( , ), multiple names for the same satellite by slashes ( \/ ). CubeSats are smaller.Crewed flights are underlined. Launch failures are marked with the \u2020 sign. Payloads deployed from other spacecraft are (enclosed in brackets)."},{"@context":"http:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"https:\/\/wiki.edu.vn\/en\/wiki40\/#breadcrumbitem","name":"Enzyklop\u00e4die"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https:\/\/wiki.edu.vn\/en\/wiki40\/ixpe-wikipedia\/#breadcrumbitem","name":"IXPE – Wikipedia"}}]}]