Suzaku: Technology, Science and Education

1. Pre-Collimator Primary Secondary “Building the Coolest X-ray Satellite” - This video tells the story of the development of the X-ray Telescopes and the X-ray Spectrometer. In addition, it includes profiles of scientists working on the mission, a description of the objects that Suzaku studies, and a look at how the instruments were put together. It shows how scientists and engineers overcome setbacks to deliver their instruments to Japan for final assembly and launch of the satellite. It also provides a window to how scientists from different cultures work together. The complete video is approximately 35 minutes long. The accompanying Teacher Guide gives lesson plans and activities for using the video in the classroom. Probing Black Hole Gravity - The strong gravity near a black hole distorts the shape of emission lines from gas around the black hole. Measuring the shape of this line tells us about the black hole spin and mass. The Suzaku XIS has performed diagnostics on these lines, while the HXD has better determined the continuum baseline for these measurements. Cosmic Ray Acceleration in Supernovae - Suzaku has added to the studies of cosmic ray acceleration in supernovae. This image of the eastern rim of the supernova remnant RX J1713-3946 shows particles heated to X-ray temperatures as they are accelerated within the shock wave of the supernova explosion. Detector Assembly He Dewar Neon Dewar The Galactic Center Region - This XIS map of the region near the galactic center shows different features in X-ray emission in two nearly equal energies. In the top map (6.3-6.5 keV), cold molecular clouds are illuminated by X-rays, which re-emit in X-ray energies. The bottom map (6.6 - 6.8 keV) shows hot X-ray gas in the galactic center region. Each map is 1.6˚ x 0.4˚. Suzaku: Technology, Science and Education Suzaku E/PO Team (NASA/GSFC) http://suzaku-epo.gsfc.nasa.gov/ The Suzaku Satellite Suzaku is a Japanese X-ray satellite carrying instruments developed by Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency, JAXA, and NASA. The satellite is designed to observe the X-ray emission from objects such as black holes, supernova remnants, and clusters of galaxies. Two of the instruments were built at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center: the X-ray Telescopes (XRT) and the X-ray Spectrometer (XRS). The telescopes utilize light-weight grazing optics to focus X-rays, and the spectrometer determines the energy of an X-ray by measuring the temperature rise in a wafer due to an incident X-ray. Suzaku was launched in July 2005. Before launch, the satellite was known as Astro-E2. Following Japanese tradition, it was renamed after launch. Suzaku means “the vermillion bird of the south”, which in mythology guards against evil and gives good fortune. Suzaku Science Suzaku provides broadband (0.2 - 600 keV) measurements of celestial sources, giving scientists the ability to resolve spectral lines and determine the high-energy continuum in a variety of sources. Its low instrument background allows for studies of extended sources such as supernova remnants. Its sensitivity allows for the timing and spectral studies of a variety of X-ray binaries. Below are examples of some of the objects Suzaku has observed. Education Program The Suzaku education program tells the story of the mission, its people, its technology, and its science to develop education materials. A multi-faceted approach guides students through the sciences of spectroscopy and optics and how astronomers use it to learn about the universe. The Instruments X-rays are focused using two grazing reflections A single mirror and a completed XRT The X-ray Telescope (XRT) - The X-ray telescopes on Suzaku use nested, conical foil mirrors to focus X-rays. Each telescope consists of 1400 individual mirrors. Each mirror is a 155 micron thick piece of aluminum having the shape of the side of a cone. To reflect X-rays, the aluminum is coated with 0.2 microns of gold. The mass of the mirrors range from 5 to 13 gm. An entire telescope assembly is 16 kg (the Chandra mirror is 950 kg). Suzaku carries five of these telescopes. X-rays are incident on the mirrors at grazing angles ranging from 0.2 to 0.6 degrees. “Observe the Universe” Student Competition - In Spring 2005 we offered an opportunity for high school students to participate in the mission by proposing for a type of object to observe. Students wrote proposals demonstrating their understanding of the mission, the capabilities of the instruments, and the science of a class of objects. The winning team, from Lick-Wilmerding High School in San Francisco, discussed their experience and their data at the meeting of the American Astronomical Society in Calgary in June 2006. Classroom Activities - We are building a portfolio of classroom activities related to the science and technology of the mission. In particular, activities deal with heat, temperature, grazing incidence optics, and spectroscopy. These are being made available on the Suzaku Learning Center. The X-ray Spectrometer (XRS) - This revolutionary X-ray spectrometer determines the energy of an X-ray by measuring the amount of heat deposited by the X-ray into a waver of mercury-telluride. This instrument can measure the energy of a 7 keV X-ray to a precision of 7 eV. (The energy resolution of the CCDs on Chandra is 140 eV at this energy. The resolution of Chandra’s transmission gratings is 0.4 - 77 ev). Accomplishing this requires keeping the detector at 0.06 K through a multi-stage cooling system. This system includes liquid helium. Suzaku was launched with enough liquid helium to run the XRS for at least 2 years. Unfortunately, the liquid helium was lost shortly after launch, and the XRS is inoperable. However, because of the promise the XRS holds for X-ray astronomy, JAXA and NASA are discussing putting it on the Japanese NEXT satellite. Suznuz (“Suzaku News You Can Use”) is a newsletter for educators which provides information about the mission and it’s education products. It highlights objects that Suzaku is studying, includes interesting aspects of the history of X-rays, and occasionally includes short features about scientists on the Suzaku team. The Hard X-ray Detector One of the four X-ray Imaging Spectrometers The X-ray Imaging Spectrometer (XIS) is a set of four CCD cameras that gives images and spectroscopy of X-rays in the 0.2-12 keV energy range. Each of the four CCDs is at the focus of one of the XRTs. The Hard X-ray Detector (HXD) measures the spectrum of X-rays ranging from 10 - 600 keV. The XRS Road Trip - a feature on the Suzaku Learning Center which provides an “instrument-eye” view of the XRS on its travels from the US to Japan, and its final build-up and preparation for launch.