China’s Einstein Probe (EP) astronomical satellite, sent into space in January this year, has made several early discoveries, including a mysteriously unusual transient phenomenon, helping to further our understanding of the universe and extreme physical processes.
Inspired by the functions of a lobster’s eyes, EP uses new X-ray detection technology to observe transients in the universe that twinkle like fireworks in an effort to reveal more about this tumultuous and little-known side of space.
During the launch, the satellite’s performance exceeded design expectations. On Thursday, the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) announced the first results of the satellite’s work, including the discovery of various types of transient phenomena.
The satellite received another name – “Tianguan” – in honor of the observation and documentation of the famous supernova SN1054 by the ancient Chinese in 1054 A.D. This scientific achievement of the Chinese Song Dynasty (960-1279) is an early example of China’s contribution to human understanding of the universe. The supernova was discovered in the Tianguan region of the ancient Chinese constellation system, and so it was called the “Tianguan Guest Star”. The ancient Chinese used the term “guest star” to refer to fleeting events, mostly supernovae and supernovae, that were bright enough to be seen with the naked eye at the time. The supernova debris later turned into the famous Crab Nebula.
During the launch and initial phase of its operation, EP detected 60 confirmed transient events and many more candidates, including stars, white dwarfs, neutron stars, black holes, supernovae, and gamma-ray bursts.
In the Milky Way, the satellite detected several new transient sources, one of which is a new X-ray binary system, possibly consisting of a stellar-mass black hole or a neutron star, designated as EP240904a.
Until now, the most distant transient source detected by EP was a gamma-ray burst codenamed EP240315a, located at a distance of about 25.6 billion light-years. “This discovery demonstrates the satellite’s ability to detect gamma-ray bursts from the distant early Universe, opening a new perspective to further understand the physical process of star collapse, which leads to the formation of black holes and relativistic jets,” said Yuan Weimin, EP mission principal investigator and researcher at the National Astronomical Observatory CAS.
The study was led by the EP science team in collaboration with numerous space and ground-based facilities and involved a large number of international scientists from many countries and agencies.
On April 8, ESA detected a transient event coded EP240408a and recorded a powerful X-ray flare from it, which increased in brightness by a factor of 300 and lasted only 12 seconds. The X-ray radiation from this source disappeared about 10 days later.
This unusual phenomenon, along with other peculiar properties of the radiation, did not correspond to previously known types of transients, indicating that it may represent an unknown class of transient sources, Yuan said.
The discovery was published in the latest issue of the Chinese academic journal SCIENCE CHINA: Physics, Mechanics & Astronomy.
“The most important significance of the first results of the experiment is the demonstration of the experiment’s ability to capture and study these fast-moving cosmic events. This will give us new insights into understanding the physical laws under extreme conditions that govern the processes in these rapid cosmic events and the formation of the first stars and black holes,” Yuan said.
The EP mission is one of a series of space science missions led by CAS. It is also an international cooperation mission involving the European Space Agency (ESA), the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics (MPE) in Germany and the French space agency CNES.
“EP has opened a new window in observations of the dynamic X-ray Universe,” said Dr. Erik Kulkers, ESA’s EP project scientist.
ESA has two scientific instruments on board: the Wide Field X-ray Telescope (WXT) to monitor the panorama of the X-ray sky and the Complementary X-ray Telescope (FXT), which allows for close-up imaging and precise detection of transient sources detected by the WXT.
The observatory proved the importance of wide-field monitoring of the X-ray sky. The observational and follow-up capabilities have enabled the discovery of numerous new X-ray transits and the regular tracking of known sources. “The discoveries of the ESA show that it is already having a significant impact on science,” said Paul O’Brien, Head of Astrophysics at the School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leicester.
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