Produced by: Tarun Mishra Designed by: Mohsin Shaikh
The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is gearing up for the launch of its Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) carrying the country's inaugural X-Ray Polarimeter Satellite (XPoSat) on January 1, 2024.
Scheduled for liftoff at 9:10 am, the XPoSat mission signifies a pivotal moment in India's space exploration journey, expanding its capabilities in the field of space-based polarimetry.
XPoSat, designed to investigate the polarization of intense X-ray sources, is the world's second dedicated polarimetry mission, following NASA's Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) launched in 2021.
The mission's scientific objective is to study the 50 brightest known sources in the universe, including pulsars, black hole X-Ray binaries, active galactic nuclei, neutron stars, and non-thermal supernova remnants.
XPoSat will be positioned in a circular low Earth orbit ranging from 500 to 700 km. The satellite is expected to operate for a minimum of five years, enabling sustained data collection and analysis.
The primary payload, POLIX (Polarimeter Instrument in X-rays), will measure the degree and angle of polarization in the medium X-ray energy range of 8-30 keV photons originating from astronomical sources.
Complementing POLIX, the XSPECT (X-ray Spectroscopy and Timing) payload is designed to provide spectroscopic information in the energy range of 0.8-15 keV.
Developed in collaboration between the Raman Research Institute (RRI) and U R Rao Satellite Centre (URSC), POLIX and XSPECT are anticipated to offer valuable insights into the physics of celestial objects.
By measuring the polarization of X-rays, XPoSat aims to provide critical information about the geometry and emission mechanisms of distant celestial sources, contributing to advancements in theoretical models.
The XPoSat mission could help in expanding our understanding of the universe by adding two crucial dimensions—degree and angle of polarization—to existing spectroscopic and timing data, potentially resolving ambiguities in current theoretical models of astronomical emissions.