The LMC & SMC represent an exceptional opportunity to study the evolution ofX-ray binaries under very different conditions to those in the Milky Way.They are close enough for the individual sources to be detected, identii??ed &studied, whilst presenting diverse environments in terms of metallicity andtidal effects. In this proposal we request regular monitoring of the SMC with Integral to locate new transient pulsar systems and to continue exploring the a??100 known & suspected HMXB systems. Precise source location will be achievedwith XMM. The source locations are critical to unlock the full potential science of the HMXB systems and it enables us to explore stellar and binary evolution in different chemical and tidal environments.
Instrument
EMOS1, EMOS2, EPN, OM, RGS1, RGS2
Temporal Coverage
2013-11-01T10:21:54Z/2013-12-26T19:05:10Z
Version
17.56_20190403_1200
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, Prof Malcolm Coe, 2015, 'Identifying & understanding the X-ray binary populations of the SMC', 17.56_20190403_1200, European Space Agency, https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-epabw2v
