| XMM-NEWTON |
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Achievments: X-rays from accretion onto black holes, properties of exploding stars,
nature of exotic matter, observations of GRB
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| Characteristics |
| Launch Date |
10 December 1999 |
| Mission End |
2 year mission now extended to 6 years |
| Launch Vehicle |
Ariane V |
| Orbit |
8 hour elliptical |
| Inclination |
40 degrees |
| Orbit |
8 hour elliptical |
| Apogee |
114.000 km |
| Perigee |
7.000 km |
| Launch Mass |
3.800 kg |
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| Big Bird |
 ESA's X-ray space observatory is unique.
It is the biggest scientific satellite ever built in Europe, its telescope mirrors
were amongst the most powerful ever developed in the world, and with its sensitive
cameras it will see much more than any previous X-ray satellite.
XMM-Newton is a three-axis stabilised spacecraft with a pointing accuracy of one arcsec.
Launch mass is 3.8 tonnes. The satellite is made up of: a service module bearing the X-ray Mirror Modules,
propulsion and electrical systems, a long telescope tube the focal plane assembly carrying the science instruments.
Total length is 10 metres, and when its solar arrays are deployed, the satellite has a 16 metres span.
The Prime contractor Dornier Satellitensysteme (Friedrichshafen, Germany- part of DaimlerChrysler Aerospace)
has led an industrial consortium involving 46 companies from 14 European countries and one in the United States.
Media Lario, Como, Italy, developed the X-ray Mirror Modules. Although the nominal mission is for two years, XMM-Newton has been designed and built to operate for ten years.
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| Science Missions Objectives |
Many celestial objects generate X-rays in extremely violent processes. But Earth's atmosphere blocks out these X-rays,
messengers of what occurred in the distant past when stars were born or died, and clues to our future. Only by placing X-ray
detectors in space can such sources be detected, pinpointed and studied in detail. XMM-Newton, the largest science satellite ever
built in Europe, has an unprecedented sensitivity.
XMM-Newton being assembled
XMM-Newton carries three very advanced X-ray telescopes. They each contain 58 high-precision concentric mirrors,
delicately nested to offer the largest collecting area possible to catch the elusive X-rays. These Mirror Modules allow XMM-Newton
to detect millions of sources, far more than any previous X-ray mission.
What excites astronomers most is that the satellite's highly eccentric orbit, travelling out to nearly one third of the distance
to the Moon, enables them to make very long and uninterrupted observations. Peering into deep space, XMM-Newton's science payload
will considerably increase our knowledge of very hot objects created when the Universe was very young.
XMM-Newton is ESA's second 'Cornerstone' mission. Development and construction of the spacecraft has overcome major technological hurdles.
Its wafer-thin X-ray mirrors are a miracle of engineering and the smoothest ever built. With its five X-ray imaging cameras and spectrographs,
and its optical monitoring telescope, the new space observatory will for the next ten years be at the cutting edge of astronomy.
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