"Unveiling the X-Ray Cosmos: Spectacular Images of Exploding Stars from XRISM and NASA"
The XRISM mission, a collaboration between Japan, NASA, and ESA, is set to revolutionize X-ray astronomy with its advanced instruments, Resolve and Xtend, offering unprecedented insights into the universe’s hottest and most massive structures. The Resolve instrument captured the most detailed X-ray spectrum of supernova remnant N132D in the Large Magellanic Cloud, revealing peaks associated with silicon, sulfur, argon, calcium, and iron. Despite technical challenges with the aperture door, Resolve is already exceeding expectations, achieving a spectral resolution of 5 electron volts instead of the planned 7. The Xtend instrument also captured an X-ray image of galaxy cluster Abell 2319, showcasing its wide field of view. NASA’s XRISM General Observer Facility is accepting proposals for observations, with Cycle 1 investigations set to begin in the summer of 2024.
