The discovery of ultra-luminous X-ray pulsars (ULXPs), i.e., neutron starsaccreting orders of magnitude above their Eddington limit, raised the questionhow these systems can become so bright. NGC 7793 P13 is one of the best systemsto study to find an answer to this question, because of its high flux, strongpulsations and known optical counterpart. These properties allowed us todetermine the full orbital ephemeris using XMM-Newton. P13 also shows asuper-orbital period in the X-rays, the origin of which is currently unknown andcannot be constrained with the existing data. Therefore we propose to continueour successful monitoring campaign of the spectrum and pulse period of P13throughout AO 19.
Instrument
EMOS1, EMOS2, EPN, OM, RGS1, RGS2
Temporal Coverage
2020-06-27T17:00:37Z/2020-06-28T13:22:59Z
Version
18.02_20200221_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, Dr Felix Fuerst, 2021, 'Continued Tracking of the Spin of the ULX Pulsar NGC 7793 P13 with XMM-Newton', 18.02_20200221_1200, European Space Agency, https://doi.org/10.57780/esa-d6835bx
