Compact objects can be very difficult to detect when they are not accreting inbinary systems. Therefore we know very little about such objects and likelywould not notice them even if they are very nearby. Two most obvious examplesare very old isolated neutron stars (those that may be beyond the death line andhence lacking pulsed radio or gamma-ray emission) and isolated stellar-massblack holes (none have been identified so far). The goal of this program is tohunt for such objects using the recent micro-lensing results from the OGLEcollaboration and place constraints of the physical processes associated withthese objects.
Instrument
EMOS1, EMOS2, EPN, OM, RGS1, RGS2
Temporal Coverage
2016-09-03T10:06:34Z/2016-09-28T04:46:21Z
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 Oleg Kargaltsev, 2017, 'Sleuthing for compact objects accreting from the interstellar medium', 17.56_20190403_1200, European Space Agency, https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-u7m53zi
