The pulsar wind bow shock nebula surrounding PSR B1853+01, embedded within theSNR W44, is the oldest known wind nebula associated with an active pulsar.Chandra observations have shown that the X-ray morphology is that of anasymmetric nebula trailing behind the pulsar.s apparent motion direction, with asmaller extent than the radio. A recent, deep Chandra image suggests an extendedregion of emission preceding the pulsar. The verification of the nature of thisemission as nonthermal and associated with the pulsar has strong implicationsfor our understanding of pulsar bow shock nebulae. We propose a 75 ks EPICobservation of this intriguing object, exploiting XMM-Newton.s unique surfacebrightness sensitivity above 3 keV to establish the nature of the emission.
Instrument
EMOS1, EMOS2, EPN, OM, RGS1, RGS2
Temporal Coverage
2009-04-24T09:57:06Z/2009-04-25T10:26:07Z
Version
PPS_NOT_AVAILABLE
Mission Description
The European Space Agencys (ESA) X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission (XMM-Newton) was launched by an Ariane 504 on December 10th 1999. XMM-Newton is ESAs 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 Earths 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.
European Space Agency, Dr Robert Petre, 2010, 'The Structure of the Bow Shock Nebula Surrounding PSR B1853+01 in the SNR W44', PPS_NOT_AVAILABLE, European Space Agency, https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-o1xalmq
