Astronomy and Solar Physics: X-ray Gas Scintillation Spectrometer Experiment

The payload complement on Spacelab 1 included a spectrometer for observations of the brighter cosmic x-ray sources. The primary scientific objective was to study the detailed spectral features of cosmic x-ray sources and their associated temporal variations over a wide energy range from about 2 to 8...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) 1984-07, Vol.225 (4658), p.177-179
Main Authors: Andresen, R D, Boella, G, Falconi, B, Lamb, P, Manzo, G, Raymont, J, Re, S, Sims, M R, Villa, G
Format: Article
Language:English
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:The payload complement on Spacelab 1 included a spectrometer for observations of the brighter cosmic x-ray sources. The primary scientific objective was to study the detailed spectral features of cosmic x-ray sources and their associated temporal variations over a wide energy range from about 2 to 80 kiloelectron volts. The instrument, based on the gas scintillation proportional counter, had a geometrical area of some 180 square centimeters with an energy resolution of about 9 percent at 7 kiloelectron volts. The results presented here show new results from two galactic binary x-ray sources, Cygnus X-3 and Centaurus X-3, and from the Perseus cluster of galaxies. The excellent energy resolution of the instrument permits line features to be identified in these sources with unprecedented quality.
ISSN:0036-8075
DOI:10.1126/science.225.4658.177