Hitomi (ASTRO-H) X-ray Astronomy Satellite

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https://www.spiedigitallibrary.org/journals/Journal-of-Astronomical-Telescopes-Instruments-and-Systems/volume-4/issue-02/021402/Hitomi-ASTRO-H-X-ray-Astronomy-Satellite/10.1117/1.JATIS.4.2.021402.full?SSO=1

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https://doi.org/10.1117/1.JATIS.4.2.021402
 http://hdl.handle.net/11603/29429

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UMBC Center for Space Sciences and Technology (CSST) / Center for Research and Exploration in Space Sciences & Technology II (CRSST II)
UMBC Faculty Collection
UMBC Physics Department

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Author/Creator ORCID

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4656-6881

Date

2018-03-13

Type of Work

journal articles
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Citation of Original Publication

Takahashi, Tadayuki, Motohide Kokubun, Kazuhisa Mitsuda, Richard L. Kelley, Takaya Ohashi, Felix Aharonian, Hiroki Akamatsu, et al. “Hitomi (ASTRO-H) X-Ray Astronomy Satellite.” Journal of Astronomical Telescopes, Instruments, and Systems 4, no. 2 (March 2018): 021402. https://doi.org/10.1117/1.JATIS.4.2.021402.

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This work was written as part of one of the author's official duties as an Employee of the United States Government and is therefore a work of the United States Government. In accordance with 17 U.S.C. 105, no copyright protection is available for such works under U.S. Law.
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Abstract

The Hitomi (ASTRO-H) mission is the sixth Japanese x-ray astronomy satellite developed by a large international collaboration, including Japan, USA, Canada, and Europe. The mission aimed to provide the highest energy resolution ever achieved at E  >  2  keV, using a microcalorimeter instrument, and to cover a wide energy range spanning four decades in energy from soft x-rays to gamma rays. After a successful launch on February 17, 2016, the spacecraft lost its function on March 26, 2016, but the commissioning phase for about a month provided valuable information on the onboard instruments and the spacecraft system, including astrophysical results obtained from first light observations. The paper describes the Hitomi (ASTRO-H) mission, its capabilities, the initial operation, and the instruments/spacecraft performances confirmed during the commissioning operations for about a month.