Xinhua News Agency, Beijing, Jan. 9 (Xinhua) -- Capturing the "fireworks" of the universe -- decoding the Einstein probe satellite.
Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhang Quan.
At 15:03 on January 9, China successfully launched the Einstein probe satellite using the Long March-2C carrier rocket at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, and the satellite successfully entered the predetermined orbit.
The Einstein probe satellite is a space science satellite developed by the Space Science Pilot of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and is named "Einstein Probe" because its main scientific objectives involve important predictions of Einstein's theory of relativity, such as black holes and gravitational waves.
At 15:03 on January 9, China successfully launched the Einstein probe satellite using the Long March-2C carrier rocket at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, and the satellite successfully entered the predetermined orbit, and the launch mission was a complete success. Xinhua News Agency (photo by Qiu Lijun).
Capture the fleeting cosmic "fireworks".
What are the eruptions in the universe?How did these outbreaks happen?Are there any other types of celestial bodies in the universe that we don't know about?An important mission of the Einstein probe satellite is to answer these questions by detecting outbursts in the universe in the X-ray band.
Eruptions in the universe usually appear for a short period of time and then disappear very quickly, like fleeting 'fireworks'. This kind of 'fireworks' appear randomly, it is difficult to **, and if you want to catch it in time, you need to conduct a large-scale, uninterrupted inspection of the universe. Yuan Weimin, chief scientist of the Einstein probe satellite and researcher at the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said.
Yuan Weimin introduced that X-rays are a kind of electromagnetic radiation, its wavelength is very short, and the photon energy is very high. Eruptions and strenuous activity of celestial bodies tend to be very hot and emit X-rays. The Einstein Probe satellite is like a wide-field camera, monitoring the activity and eruptions of celestial bodies by taking X-ray "movies".
Because the Earth's atmosphere blocks X-rays from celestial bodies, telescopes need to be sent into space to detect X-rays. Yuan Weimin said that the Einstein probe satellite will carry out high-sensitivity real-time dynamic survey monitoring.
Look farther and clearer.
Similar equipment available in the world, due to its limited sensitivity, mainly detects the explosion phenomenon in the Milky Way, as well as the brightest gamma-ray burst in the universe. To detect more bursts from other galaxies, you need equipment that can see farther away. Zhang Chen, head of the optical system of the Einstein probe satellite wide-field X-ray telescope and a researcher at the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said.
According to reports, the Einstein probe satellite is equipped with two payloads, a wide-field X-ray telescope and a follow-up X-ray telescope, and the "lobster eye" microaperture array focused imaging technology has been used on a large scale for the first time in the world, and the space X-ray application of CMOS sensors has also been realized.
Schematic diagram of the in-orbit operation of the Einstein probe satellite. (Photo courtesy of the Institute of Microsatellite Innovation, Chinese Academy of Sciences).
Compared with similar equipment in the world, the detection capability of Einstein probe satellites has been increased by more than 1 order of magnitude, and it can find more distant and fainter signals, see more clearly, and locate more accurately. Zhang Chen said.
It is reported that the Einstein probe satellite can accurately capture the distant and faint high-energy temporary sources and fleeting unknown phenomena in the universe while carrying out large-field field detection, and issue early warnings to guide other astronomical equipment to make follow-up observations.
Help solve the unsolved mysteries of the universe.
From stellar activity near the solar system, to the eruptions of white dwarfs, neutron stars, and black holes in the Milky Way and neighboring galaxies, to supernovae in more distant galaxies, and the eruptions of silent black holes in the universe, the Einstein probe satellites have a wide range of scientific exploration targets. Liu Yuan, chief engineer of the Einstein probe satellite scientific application system and researcher at the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said.
In addition, the merger of two neutron stars produces gravitational wave events, and the Einstein probe satellite may also detect X-ray radiation accompanying gravitational wave signals.
The Einstein probe satellite can accurately capture more distant and faint transient sources and eruptive objects, and look for X-ray signals from gravitational wave sources. Liu Yuan said that this is of great scientific significance for the study of stellar activity, the formation and evolution of compact celestial bodies, etc.
When did the first stars in the universe form, "Is there a supermassive black hole at the center of every galaxy......?"The satellite's findings are expected to help answer a range of important scientific questions. Liu Yuan said.