The Sounds of Space | StarTalk Live! at Guild Hall

X-Ray Tech

The design and operation of x-ray telescopes like Chandra involve unique challenges due to the energetic nature of x-rays. Kimberly Arcand explains that unlike optical telescopes, x-ray telescopes require nested, barrel-shaped mirrors to graze x-rays down to sensitive detectors, as flat mirrors would absorb them 1. These mirrors must be incredibly smooth, akin to sanding down Colorado's Pike's Peak to less than an inch tall 1. The Chandra telescope, launched in a space shuttle, was packed tightly due to its size, making the astronauts' mission risky 2.

The shuttle was not a suitcase.

--- Neil deGrasse Tyson

Despite these challenges, Chandra has surpassed its expected lifespan, operating for 25 years with ongoing reprogramming and adjustments to maintain its efficiency 3.

   

Black Holes

X-ray technology has significantly advanced our understanding of black holes. Kimberly Arcand describes how Chandra transformed our view of the x-ray background, revealing it to be composed mostly of black holes rather than a uniform sea of x-rays 4. This discovery was akin to putting on glasses and seeing a clear picture where there was once a blur 4. Active black holes, like the one in Centaurus A, emit high-energy jets visible to Chandra, providing insights into their dynamic environments 5.

Chandra found that there were billions and billions of black holes.

--- Kimberly Arcand

Additionally, Chandra's observations of galaxy clusters have contributed to our understanding of dark matter, showing how normal matter trails behind dark matter in structures like the Bullet Cluster 6.

   

Tech Impact

The technological innovations from x-ray astronomy have had profound impacts on Earth. Kimberly Arcand highlights how Chandra's development led to advancements in medical imaging, such as higher resolution and lower dose mammograms and MRIs 7. The expertise in miniaturizing x-ray detectors for space applications also paved the way for airport security scanners in the 1970s 7.

X-ray astronomy was created in the US and, like, we have this incredible expertise.

--- Kimberly Arcand

Furthermore, the collaboration between different types of telescopes, like Chandra and the James Webb Space Telescope, showcases how combining various wavelengths of light can lead to groundbreaking discoveries, such as identifying the most distant black holes 8.