| Name | 055022 |
| Title | The Fastest Stellar Winds as New Sources of Hard X-rays |
| URL | https://nxsa.esac.esa.int/nxsa-sl/servlet/data-action-aio?obsno=0550220101 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-nx8i1ny |
| Author | European Space Agency |
| Description | Wolf-Rayet stars of the oxygen subclass (WO) are massive stars in their terminal evolutionary stage short before exploding as supernova or GRB. We predict that WO stars emit hard X-rays. They posses the fastest stellar winds among all non-degenerate stars, with velocities of 2 per cent of the speed of light. Strong shocks should develop in these winds and heat the plasma to 100 MK, resulting in X-ray emission. We request a 75 ksec observation of the closest WO star, WR 142, to obtain EPIC spectra and measure the parameters of the hot plasma, as a stringent test for the theory of X-ray production in hot star winds. In addition, our FoV will comprise 16 neighbouring OB stars. With their X-ray spectra we will probe the causality behind the correlation between bolometric and X-ray luminosity. |
| Publication | No observations found associated with the current proposal |
| Instrument | EMOS1, EMOS2, EPN, OM, RGS1, RGS2 |
| Temporal Coverage | 2008-05-28T08:29:43Z/2008-05-31T00:09:15Z |
| Version | 17.56_20190403_1200 |
| Mission Description | The European Space Agency's (ESA) X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission (XMM-Newton) was launched by an Ariane 504 on December 10th 1999. XMM-Newton is ESA's second cornerstone of the Horizon 2000 Science Programme. It carries 3 high throughput X-ray telescopes with an unprecedented effective area, and an optical monitor, the first flown on a X-ray observatory. The large collecting area and ability to make long uninterrupted exposures provide highly sensitive observations. Since Earth's atmosphere blocks out all X-rays, only a telescope in space can detect and study celestial X-ray sources. The XMM-Newton mission is helping scientists to solve a number of cosmic mysteries, ranging from the enigmatic black holes to the origins of the Universe itself. Observing time on XMM-Newton is being made available to the scientific community, applying for observational periods on a competitive basis. |
| Creator Contact | https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/xmm-newton/xmm-newton-helpdesk |
| Date Published | 2009-06-28T00:00:00Z |
| Publisher And Registrant | European Space Agency |
| Credit Guidelines | European Space Agency, 2009, The Fastest Stellar Winds As New Sources Of Hard X-Rays, 17.56_20190403_1200, European Space Agency, https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-nx8i1ny |