Are there major initiatives for which the capabilities of @ChandraScience are absolutely required to address fundamental questions about our current understanding of the Universe that would represent a crucial missed opportunity if they are not completed during Chandra's lifetime?
The community responded, and we are pleased to announce two Chandra Legacy Programs https://cxc.harvard.edu/CLP/
Well, in this case it is. Back in 2003, #Saturn's moon Titan passed in front of the #CrabNebula. Chandra was on the spot, catching the transit as it happened. Astronomers were able to see the shadow cast by Titan, and used the size of that shadow to measure the extent of Titan's atmosphere.
A great result, demonstrating the power of the Dark Side!
We recently released version 2.1 of the #ChandraXRay Source Catalog!
In short, everything we observed that was released publicly prior to the end of 2021 has been reduced, processed, and made available for easy consumption. With over 400,000 individual sources and covering 730 square degrees, the CSC opens the X-ray sky to all astronomers -- even if you've never looked at an X-ray photon before.
Happy Earth Day! While the #ChandraXRay mission has observed sources near and far, we're one of a very limited set of astronomical observatories that has actively and intentionally observed Earth!
In the winter of 2003-2004, we observed the soft energy X-rays associated with the Northern Lights.
For over two decades, NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory — humanity's most powerful telescope of its kind — has provided astronomers with a better understanding of the structure and evolution of the universe. But stringent spending caps could force NASA to shut it down. Futurism has more: https://flip.it/OaulLn #Science#Space#NASA#ChandraXRay
The Christmas Tree cluster (NGC 2264) is host to a number of young stars that flicker in X-rays -- although not in the coordinated way shown below (that's just some Holiday fun!). Chandra observations of these X-ray variations are key to unwrapping the mysteries of stars!
The Chandra X-ray Center (CXC) is pleased to announce that version 4.16 of CIAO ("Chandra Interactive Analysis of Observations") and version 4.11.0 of Chandra CALDB ("Calibration Database") are available for download from https://cxc.cfa.harvard.edu/ciao/download .
CIAO 4.16 includes version 8.5 of SAOImage DS9 (the astronomical imaging and data visualization application) and Version 5.5.3 of MARX (the Chandra on-orbit performance simulator). #Astrodon#ChandraXRay#AstronomySoftware
After 24 years exploring the X-ray Universe, the legacy of Chandra is secure; however, we want to also examine what scientific challenges remain for which the capabilities of Chandra are essential and would represent a crucial missed opportunity if they are not completed during Chandra's lifetime.
To that end, we have released a call for White Papers for our nominal 6 Ms Chandra Legacy Program. Details can be found here:
Our summer workshop is underway! #HRXS23, discussing High Resolution X-ray Spectroscopy, has brought researchers -- from students to distinguished experts -- to Cambridge to discuss the past, present, and future of high-res spectra with Chandra, as well as our friends at XMM, XRISM, and missions yet to come!
This weekend we celebrated our 24th Birthday! Since our launch on the Space Shuttle Columbia on July 23, 1999 (Eileen Collins commanding) we have been exploring the cosmos and bringing the high energy Universe into focus. Here's to 24 more years!
Scientists using the #Chandra X-Ray Observatory have found an "H"-shaped structure in the multimillion-degree gas around Messier 84. The researchers mapped the hot gas to within 100 light years from the galaxy's central supermassive black hole with #ChandraXRay and compared that to #VLA radio images of the black holes jets to better understand how black holes feed from and impact their surroundings. #Astronomy#Astrodon