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X-ray Astronomy at JAXA Japan's Leading-Edge X-ray Astronomy: Unveiling the Mysteries of a Dynamic Universe
What is X-ray Astronomy? The Light That We Can't See - Exploring Space with X-Rays
 
Gamma Rays - The Next Frontier

Gamma rays have even more powerful energy and deeper penetration than X-rays. Measuring them allows us to observe even hotter objects. Gamma rays are emitted from extremely hot sources: 1) electrons accelerated close to the speed of light by a massive space accelerator, such as jets of a large black hole, 2) the decay of unstable atomic nuclei in a massive space nuclear reactor, such as a supernova explosion, and 3) electron-positron annihilation.
In short, Gamma rays can be used to detect a whole different set of phenomena, and are the key to expanding our understanding of major astrophysical events.

The Attraction of Gamma Rays

Tadayuki Takahashi
Professor, High Energy Astrophysics Group, Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, JAXA

Gamma rays are the new frontier for space observation.
If Gamma rays can be more precisely observed, it will be possible to see around the core of a black hole, and observe celestial bodies that we have never before been able to see. But developing a high-resolution Gamma-ray detector is not easy, so Gamma-ray observation is not yet as advanced as X-ray observation.
X-ray observation has proven that the universe is hot, dynamic and unstable, and overturned the "common sense" view of the universe as "silent." As such, X-ray astronomy has had a huge impact on humankind, and as a result, its significance has been recognized with a Nobel Prize. Now, Gamma-ray astronomy is set to play a similar role in the study of the universe.
To see things that haven't been seen before, it is essential to build an observation tool that no one has ever had.
SUZAKU (ASTRO-EII) is primarily an X-ray observatory, but it is also carrying Japan's first Gamma-ray detector, which was more than 15 years in development. This original Japanese technology is going to open the door to Gamma-ray astronomy in our country.
Covering a broader spectrum than ever before, SUZAKU's X-ray and Gamma-ray observations unveil the mysteries of previously undetectable high-energy phenomena in the universe.


In More Depth
? X-ray Astronomy Group at ISAS
? JAXA Column; The Forefront of Black Hole Astronomy Kazuo Makishima

The Universe Revealed by X-rays 1 | 2 | 3
1. What Is X-ray Astronomy? 2. Japan's Leading-Edge X-ray Astronomy 3. ASTRO-EII Launched into Space - Summer 2005
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