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spacetimewithstuartgary · 3 months ago

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Gas motion in the Centaurus galaxy cluster challenges star formation assumptions

Kokoro Hosogi, a physics student at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH), has achieved a rare honor for an undergraduate: her contributions are being recognized in a study published in the journal Nature. The researcher recently supported the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM) studying celestial X-ray objects to help illuminate why gas at the core of the Centaurus galaxy cluster approximately 170 million light years away is not generating young new stars as rapidly as predicted, a discovery with important implications on the evolution of galaxy clusters.

XRISM is a cutting-edge X-ray telescope, a joint venture between NASA, the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and the European Space Agency (ESA), launched in Sept. 2023. The initiative focused on a region of space known as the Intracluster Medium, or ICM. This is an area of hot, diffuse plasma that fills the space between galaxies within a galaxy cluster, composed of ionized hydrogen, helium, heavy elements and electrons, detectable through its strong X-ray emission due to its high temperature.

"There is an old problem in galaxy clusters," explains Dr. Ming Sun, a professor of physics and astronomy at UAH, who is Hosogi's mentor, as well as the only scientist from the state of Alabama to take part in the XRISM collaboration. Both Hosogi and Dr. Sun are co-authors of the Nature paper. "The core of many clusters is very bright in X-rays, so you expect over time there should be a lot of gas cooled to form stars, but you see few young stars there.'"

This phenomenon is known as the "cooling flow problem" in astronomy, referring to the discrepancy between the predicted rate at which hot gas in the center of galaxy clusters should cool and the much lower observed rate of star formation in those regions, suggesting that most of the cooling gas is not actually forming stars.

The discrepancy has been thought to be due to feedback mechanisms from active galactic nuclei (AGN)—a very bright, compact region at the center of a galaxy, powered by a supermassive black hole that is actively accreting matter, which in turn reheats the gas, preventing it from cooling too rapidly.

However, in the case of the Centaurus cluster, "the new study shows the central dense X-ray core is not sitting still," Sun notes. "Instead it can move, or 'slosh,' around the bottom of the gravitational potential well. This sloshing motion prevents excessive accumulation of cooled gas at the center. It may also redistribute the energy injected by the central AGN and bring in thermal energy from the surrounding ICM.

"The key breakthrough came through a new instrument on XRISM called Resolve that provides high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy to reveal the bulk motion of the hot gas, which was completely unknown before, as well as the turbulent motion of the hot gas."

Adding another shoulder to the wheel

"Bulk motion" refers to large-scale, organized flows of gas within a cluster, primarily caused by gravitational forces or large-scale processes like mergers. In contrast, turbulent motion is characterized by chaotic, irregular and smaller-scale movements, such as eddies within the gas, often driven by instabilities and energy dissipation.

The cluster study involved collecting observational data gathered by the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) instrument, which is mounted on the Very Large Telescope (VLT) operated by the European Southern Observatory. The data provides a detailed spectroscopic image capturing both light intensity and wavelength information across a wide field of view, allowing astronomers to study the chemical composition and dynamics of distant astronomical objects with high spatial resolution in optical.

"As a guest scientist in the XRISM collaboration, I can bring in a student or a postdoc," Sun says. "Kokoro has a near perfect GPA, and she has also developed the ability of problem solving and debugging without seeking help from more senior members. It is important for students to develop that trait to grow in confidence.

"For the Centaurus project, Kokoro reduced the VLT/MUSE data, and I analyzed the MUSE data further to provide important information, especially on the velocity of the central galaxy that is crucial to constraining the bulk motion of the hot gas detected by XRISM, as well as the velocity information of warm, ionized gas," Sun adds.

"For her contribution, I asked to include Kokoro on the paper. It had to go through the XRISM leadership team, but it was approved. Yes, it is a rare opportunity, but she made important contributions to the project."

"I am pursuing a bachelor's degree in physics, with a concentration in astronomy and astrophysics, with the Data Science certificate program at UAH," Hosogi says, who is now working as a Research Assistant under Dr. Sun. "My interest is in gravitational waves, pulsar timing arrays, cosmology, black holes and galaxies."

Originally from Japan, Hosogi chose to study at UAH at the recommendation of UAH alumnus Sakurako Kuba, who is also from Japan. She started to work with Sun in 2023 as a Research and Creative Experience for Undergraduates (RCEU) program student and has continued her work as a paid student specialist in Sun's group since then. She graduated in December 2024 is currently applying for graduate schools in astronomy.

"These large projects can have many pieces of detailed works, so people with different backgrounds and at different career levels can all make a contribution," Sun says. "It can be rewarding to involve undergraduate students in cutting-edge research."

These large projects can have many pieces of detailed works, so people with different backgrounds and at different career levels can all make a contribution," Sun says. "It can be rewarding to involve undergraduate students in cutting-edge research."

IMAGE: NGC 4696, a galaxy within the Centaurus galaxy cluster, 170 million light years from Earth. Credit: NASA/ESA

#science #space #astronomy #physics #news #astrophysics

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michaelgabrill · 1 year ago

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NASA JAXA XRISM Spots Iron Fingerprints in Nearby Active Galaxy

After starting science operations in February, Japan-led XRISM (X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission) studied the monster black hole at the center of galaxy NGC 4151. “XRISM’s Resolve instrument captured a detailed spectrum of the area around the black hole,” said Brian Williams, NASA’s project scientist for the mission at the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center […] from NASA https://ift.tt/mr6P9HU

#NASA #space #JAXA XRISM Spots Iron Fingerprints in Nearby Active Galaxy #Michael Gabrill

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forexdigitalinfo · 2 years ago

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Como todas as câmeras do mundo, os sofisticados instrumentos de imagem usados nos telescópios detectam comprimentos de onda de luz. Embora alguns telescópios vejam na luz visível, como fazem os olhos humanos, outros trabalham em comprimentos de onda que os humanos não conseguem ver.Por exemplo, o instrumento NIRCam do Telescópio Espacial James Webb opera em comprimentos de onda do infravermelho próximo, enquanto o MIRI opera no infravermelho médio.Cientistas e processadores de imagens usam essas imagens para ver eventos cósmicos e objetos invisíveis ao olho humano.Essas imagens são então traduzidas em cores que imitam a forma como os diferentes comprimentos de onda da luz visível que os humanos veem.Os telescópios detectam muitos tipos diferentes de luz, e cada tipo de luz revela uma ampla gama de detalhes sobre o espaço. Alguns telescópios, como o James Webb, também incluem um instrumento chamado espectrômetro que analisa os comprimentos de onda espec��ficos da luz emitida por um objeto.A espectroscopia fornece uma quantidade muito maior de informaçõesO estudo desses espectros, chamado espectroscopia, revela uma enorme quantidade de informações sobre um objeto."O espectrômetro microcalorímetro do XRISM, chamado Resolve, é uma colaboração entre a JAXA e a NASA. Ele criará espectros, medições de intensidade de luz em uma faixa de energias, para raios X de 400 a 12.000 elétron-volts”, disseram os cientistas.Por outro lado, James Webb captura espectros semelhantes, mas apenas para luz infravermelha. Embora telescópios como o Webb sejam extraordinariamente poderosos e possam ver objetos extremamente distantes, alguns objetos continuam impossíveis de fotografar diretamente.“A espectroscopia é o estudo de como a matéria interage com a luz”, explica Sophia Roberts, produtora da NASA Goddard.O Near-Infrared Imager e o Slitless Spectrograph de James Webb capturam dados que “fazem o coração dos cientistas disparar”, como diz Roberts.Ao estudar um espectro de transmissão NIRISS do exoplaneta WASP-96 b, é possível detectar e medir gases-chave na atmosfera do planeta com base no padrão de absorção, por ex.

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digital-trends-unleased · 2 years ago

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How to watch the XRISM X-ray mission launch this weekend

The upcoming weekend holds great excitement for space enthusiasts, with two significant launches set to take place within close proximity. On Friday, August 25, a Crew Dragon spacecraft propelled by a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket will carry four crew members as part of the Crew-7 mission to the International Space Station. Just a day later, on Saturday, August 26, another launch will occur – the collaborative European and Japanese X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM). You can catch both launches via live stream, so if you're interested in a weekend of rocket-watching, we've got you covered. We've already provided information on how to watch the Crew-7 launch. Keep reading for further instructions on tuning in to the XRISM launch. What to expect from the XRISM launch XRISM stands as a collaborative venture between the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japanese space agency, known as JAXA. The primary objective involves launching a space-based mission equipped with two instruments: Resolve, designed for measuring the X-ray-emitting object temperatures, and Xtend, intended for X-ray object imaging. X-ray observations play a vital role in comprehending extraordinary phenomena like supernovas and the collision of black holes, events that emit substantial radiation, particularly at high energy levels. XRISM will join the ranks of missions such as NASA's Chandra and ESA's XMM-Newton in exploring this specific segment of the electromagnetic spectrum. Matteo Guainazzi, the ESA project scientist for XRISM, emphasized, "X-ray astronomy empowers us to scrutinize the most energetically charged occurrences in the universe. It holds the answers to pivotal questions in modern astrophysics: the evolution of the universe's grandest structures, the distribution of the fundamental matter across the cosmos, and the influence of massive black holes at the cores of galaxies." This statement was made in reference to the project's significance. How to watch the XRISM launch XRISM is set to embark on its journey to a low-Earth orbit via an H-IIA rocket, launching from the Tanegashima Space Center in Japan. The scheduled launch time is 8:34 p.m. ET (5:34 p.m. PT) on August 26. The launch proceedings will be broadcast live by JAXA in both Japanese and English. The coverage will commence at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT). You can partake in the viewing experience either by visiting YouTube or by utilizing the video player conveniently located near the top of this page. Read the full article

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spacenutspod · 2 years ago

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The Mitsubishi Heavy Industries H-IIA launch vehicle, as its career is being wound down in favor of the H3, is preparing to fly the Smart Lander for Investigating Moon (SLIM) robotic lunar lander and the X-Ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM) X-ray telescope on its 47th flight. After this flight, the second of 2023 for the H-IIA, the H-IIA will have three flights left before retirement. The H-IIA vehicle F47 is scheduled to launch from the LA-Y1 launch pad at Tanegashima Space Center, Japan, on Monday, Aug. 28, at 00:26 UTC. The launch window for this mission lasts until Sept. 15. Immediately after liftoff, the H-IIA will fly an eastward trajectory over the Pacific. The H-IIA’s two solid rocket boosters are to be released near the T+1:48 mark, while the core and its LE-7A engine, using liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen as propellants, will operate until around T+6:35. See AlsoXRISM & SLIM UpdatesJapanese SectionL2 Master SectionClick here to Join L2 After stage separation, the second stage, equipped with a LE-5B engine and using the same propellant combination as the LE-7A, would burn until approximately 15 minutes after launch. The two payloads will be separated sometime after the stage shuts down its engine. The XRISM X-ray observatory is to be placed into a 550-kilometer circular low-Earth orbit inclined 31 degrees to the Equator. The SLIM lunar lander will also be placed in the same orbit but will use its own engines to get to the Moon. XRISM This flight’s main payload is the XRISM — the observatory is a replacement mission started in 2016 after the failure of the Hitomi X-ray observatory weeks after reaching orbit. Hitomi was in its commissioning phase, having made some test observations when false information from a sensor and software issues caused the spacecraft to spin in orbit and break apart. Artist’s rendition of the XRISM X-ray observatory in orbit. (Credit: JAXA) Hitomi’s failure could have left the scientific community without an orbiting X-ray observatory for a long period of time from the early 2020s to the late 2030s. JAXA began the XRISM project in June 2016, three months after Hitomi’s failure. NASA, ESA, and major universities on three continents are collaborating on the project. X-ray astronomy has only been performed within the last sixty years, as X-rays from deep space are attenuated by the Earth’s atmosphere. Humanity has observed the heavens in visible light with its own eyes for millennia and with optical means for centuries. The advent of spaceflight has enabled observations of stars, galaxies, and the background of the universe in wavelengths inaccessible to astronomers prior to the 1960s. The electromagnetic spectrum. (Credit: NASA) The first Japanese X-ray observatory, Cygnus X-1, was launched in 1979, and Japan has successfully flown a number of X-ray telescopes. XRISM will join other space-based observatories such as the Chandra X-ray Observatory, XMM-Newton, NuSTAR, and IXPE in orbit. These spacecraft all observe the universe in the X-ray spectrum but do so in different ways which complement each other. X-rays are generated by objects like exploding stars, black holes, radio galaxies, pulsars, and other high-energy phenomena. XRISM’s science objectives are to study clusters of galaxies, how the structure of the Universe evolves, how matter spreads through interstellar space, how energy is transported through the Universe, and how matter behaves under strong gravitational and magnetic fields that cannot be created on Earth. The Resolve instrument, one of two science instruments aboard XRISM. (Credit: Larry Gilbert/NASA) To accomplish these objectives, XRISM is equipped with two instruments, both attached to a dedicated X-ray mirror assembly. The Resolve spectrometer is designed to make highly detailed measurements of an X-ray emitting object’s temperature and composition, and can make detailed Doppler measurements to determine how objects in the Universe move. Resolve needs to be cooled to -273.1 degrees Celsius, which is just barely above absolute zero, to make its observations. This is done with a dewar filled with superfluid helium. The instrument observes “soft” X-rays, which have longer wavelengths than “hard” X-rays which spacecraft like IXPE are designed to observe. The Xtend X-ray imager, like Resolve, is designed to observe soft X-rays. Xtend has a field of view that can capture the full Moon, and can image larger celestial objects. The instrument is similar to one that was used on Hitomi. XRISM X-ray observatory undergoing vibration testing. (Credit: JAXA) The XRISM spacecraft masses 2,300 kilograms and is eight meters long and three meters in diameter. In addition, the two solar panels will extend nine meters from tip to tip. After the spacecraft reaches orbit, there will be a critical operation phase where XRISM’s attitude control ability will be tested. A commissioning phase will test the spacecraft’s subsystems, and a seven-month performance verification phase will evaluate the science instruments. Once this is finished, science observations will start. The primary mission is scheduled to last for two years, and a mission extension will be evaluated. Artist’s rendition of the SLIM lunar lander on the Moon. (Credit: JAXA) SLIM On the heels of the successful Chandrayaan-3 landing, Japan will seek to join the United States, the Soviet Union, China, and India in the club of nations that have landed probes successfully on the Moon. The SLIM lander will attempt to succeed where earlier Japanese landing attempts with the Hakuto-R and OMOTENASHI missions failed. SLIM is the secondary payload on this flight. The project is an outgrowth of the SELENE-B lander proposed at the turn of the century, and SLIM was proposed in 2012. The spacecraft’s critical design review was done in 2019, and its launch date kept moving along with the XRISM payload’s flight. The SLIM lander masses around 700 kilograms after it is fueled, and it is built around a cylindrical fuel tank over two meters long containing hypergolic propellants. The spacecraft is equipped with two main engines capable of 500 Newtons of thrust along with 12 thrusters capable of around 20 Newtons of thrust. The SLIM lunar lander undergoing processing before its flight. (Credit: JAXA) The spacecraft requires a slow, fuel-efficient trajectory that would take SLIM to the Moon in around four months. This is similar to the HAKUTO-R lander, and unlike larger landers like the Chang’e or Chandrayaan spacecraft which took less time to reach the Moon. Once SLIM reaches lunar orbit, it will spend around a month there before its landing attempt. Unlike the Chandrayaan-3 mission, SLIM is not targeted for the south polar region. The landing site is in Mare Nectaris, and is at 13.3 degrees South latitude, 25.2 degrees East longitude, on the slopes by Shioli crater. When SLIM’s deorbit burn is complete, it will use a system based on face recognition technology to autonomously navigate to its landing site. The spacecraft has an onboard map with observational data from the SELENE orbiter. Using that data, it will compare the terrain features it sees, and it is equipped with a landing radar, laser range finder, and a navigation camera to provide critical information to the integrated computer. A major objective of SLIM is to demonstrate a precision landing to within 100 meters of its target. This capability, if achieved, would enable future landers to reach sites currently not able to be visited by spacecraft. Current lunar landing capabilities are on the order of at least several kilometers as the landing ellipse. The SLIM lunar lander transition from vertical to horizontal as it lands. (Credit: JAXA) SLIM will transition to a horizontal position just before landing, and will use five fixed landing legs with crushable aluminum shock absorbers to touch down on the lunar surface. Thin film solar panels mounted on the side opposite the landing legs provide power, while an S-band communication system connects SLIM with Earth. The spacecraft is equipped with a multi-band spectral camera that is designed to measure the composition of rocks surrounding the landing site. It is hoped that mineralogy measurements can help scientists piece together how the Moon formed. The LEV-1 and LEV-2 probes that will work on the lunar surface after separation from SLIM. (Credit: JAXA) A small probe known as the Lunar Exploration Vehicle-1 is to separate from SLIM just before landing and image the site. SLIM is also carrying the ball-shaped SORA-Q mini-rover, also known as Lunar Exploration Vehicle-2, that was designed by Tomy, the Japanese toy maker who invented the transformers toys. In addition, NASA has provided a mirror reflector to enable precise measurement of the distance between Earth and the landing site, similar to the ones aboard Chandrayaan-3 and the Apollo missions. A stretch goal for SLIM is to conduct operations until lunar sunset. Lunar daylight at a given location lasts around 14 Earth days, and once the sun sets the lunar surface can reach a temperature of minus 130 degrees Celsius. Launch of H-IIA F44. (Credit: MHI Launch Services) H-IIA retirement The H-II family has been Japan’s workhorse launch vehicle for nearly 30 years. The H-II’s first flight was in 1994, while the H-IIA first flew in 2001 after the H-II was retired following a launch failure in 1999. The H-IIB first flew in 2009 for HTV cargo ships to ISS and last flew in 2020 . The H-II family overall has launched communications and weather satellites, lunar and interplanetary probes, and military reconnaissance satellites along with other payloads. The H-IIA is the only vehicle still active in the H-II family of rockets, and the H3 is due to replace it. However, the H3’s first flight in March of this year ended in failure, and the second stage was implicated in the failure. The H3 second stage is very similar to the H-IIA’s, so common failure modes had to be cleared before the XRISM/SLIM launch could fly. Rendering of the H3 rocket in flight, sporting 2 SRB-3 boosters in its H3-24 configuration. (Credit: Mack Crawford for NSF/L2) After this flight, the H-IIA is slated to fly the GOSAT-GW greenhouse gas monitoring satellite no earlier than December 2023 and the Japanese military IGS-Optical 8 and IGS-Radar 8 reconnaissance spacecraft no earlier than April 2024. If all goes well, the H-IIA would end its career with 49 successful launches in 50 attempts, with the only failure being in 2003 due to the loss of an SRB separation system. The H-IIA joins the Ariane 5 among the major launch vehicles being retired in 2023. JAXA is working to return the H3 to flight and the timetable for this is not currently known. Once the H3’s issues are resolved, it is set to become Japan’s main launcher for important missions to ISS, civilian and military weather, communications, and observation satellites, and future lunar and interplanetary flights. (Lead image: An H-IIA on the LA-Y1 launch pad at Tanegashima before the Himawari-8 launch. Credit: JAXA) The post Japanese H-IIA set to launch X-ray telescope and lunar lander appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com.

#space #astronomy #news #science

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spacetimewithstuartgary · 5 months ago

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XRISM mission looks deeply into 'hidden' stellar system

The Japan-led XRISM (X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission) observatory has captured the most detailed portrait yet of gases flowing within Cygnus X-3, one of the most studied sources in the X-ray sky.

Cygnus X-3 is a binary that pairs a rare type of high-mass star with a compact companion—likely a black hole.

"The nature of the massive star is one factor that makes Cygnus X-3 so intriguing," said Ralf Ballhausen, a postdoctoral associate at the University of Maryland, College Park, and NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.

"It's a Wolf-Rayet star, a type that has evolved to the point where strong outflows called stellar winds strip gas from the star's surface and drive it outward. The compact object sweeps up and heats some of this gas, causing it to emit X-rays."

A paper describing the findings, led by Ballhausen, will appear in a future edition of The Astrophysical Journal and is currently available on the arXiv preprint server.

"For XRISM, Cygnus X-3 is a Goldilocks target—its brightness is 'just right' in the energy range where XRISM is especially sensitive," said co-author Timothy Kallman, an astrophysicist at NASA Goddard. "This unusual source has been studied by every X-ray satellite ever flown, so observing it is a kind of rite of passage for new X-ray missions."

XRISM (pronounced "crism") is led by JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) in collaboration with NASA, along with contributions from ESA (European Space Agency). NASA and JAXA developed the mission's microcalorimeter spectrometer instrument, named Resolve.

Observing Cygnus X-3 for 18 hours in late March, Resolve acquired a high-resolution spectrum that allows astronomers to better understand the complex gas dynamics operating there. These include outflowing gas produced by a hot, massive star, its interaction with the compact companion, and a turbulent region that may represent a wake produced by the companion as it orbits through the outrushing gas.

In Cygnus X-3, the star and compact object are so close they complete an orbit in just 4.8 hours. The binary is thought to lie about 32,000 light-years away in the direction of the northern constellation Cygnus.

While thick dust clouds in our galaxy's central plane obscure any visible light from Cygnus X-3, the binary has been studied in radio, infrared, and gamma-ray light, as well as in X-rays.

The system is immersed in the star's streaming gas, which is illuminated and ionized by X-rays from the compact companion. The gas both emits and absorbs X-rays, and many of the spectrum's prominent peaks and valleys incorporate both aspects. Yet a simple attempt at understanding the spectrum comes up short because some of the features appear to be in the wrong place.

That's because the rapid motion of the gas displaces these features from their normal laboratory energies due to the Doppler effect. Absorption valleys typically shift up to higher energies, indicating gas moving toward us at speeds of up to 930,000 mph (1.5 million kph). Emission peaks shift down to lower energies, indicating gas moving away from us at slower speeds.

Some spectral features displayed much stronger absorption valleys than emission peaks. The reason for this imbalance, the team concludes, is that the dynamics of the stellar wind allow the moving gas to absorb a broader range of X-ray energies emitted by the companion. The detail of the XRISM spectrum, particularly at higher energies rich in features produced by ionized iron atoms, allowed the scientists to disentangle these effects.

"A key to acquiring this detail was XRISM's ability to monitor the system over the course of several orbits," said Brian Williams, NASA's project scientist for the mission at Goddard. "There's much more to explore in this spectrum, and ultimately we hope it will help us determine if Cygnus X-3's compact object is indeed a black hole."

XRISM is a collaborative mission between JAXA and NASA, with participation by ESA. NASA's contribution includes science participation from CSA (Canadian Space Agency).

TOP IMAGE: Cygnus X-3 is a high-mass binary consisting of a compact object (likely a black hole) and a hot Wolf-Rayet star. This artist's concept shows one interpretation of the system. High-resolution X-ray spectroscopy indicates two gas components: a heavy background outflow, or wind, emanating from the massive star and a turbulent structure—perhaps a wake carved into the wind—located close to the orbiting companion. As shown here, a black hole's gravity captures some of the wind into an accretion disk around it, and the disk's orbital motion sculpts a path (yellow arc) through the streaming gas. During strong outbursts, the companion emits jets of particles moving near the speed of light, seen here extending above and below the black hole. Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center

LOWER IMAGE: XRISM’s Resolve instrument has captured the most detailed X-ray spectrum yet acquired of Cygnus X-3. Peaks indicate X-rays emitted by ionized gases, and valleys form where the gases absorb X-rays; many lines are also shifted to both higher and lower energies by gas motions. Credit: JAXA/NASA/XRISM Collaboration

#science #space #astronomy #physics #news #astrophysics

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digital-trends-unleased · 2 years ago

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How to watch the XRISM X-ray mission launch this weekend

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