The soft x-RAY background surrounds our local galactic environment yet very little is known about the physical characteristics of this plasma. A high-resolution spectrum could unlock the properties of…

This federal contract award, identified as 80NSSC18K0282, was granted by the Shared Services Center (SSC) to The Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) to conduct a series of suborbital rocket flights for high-resolution X-ray grating spectroscopy. The goal is to characterize the physical properties of the diffuse, low-intensity soft X-ray background in the local galactic environment, which has been difficult to observe using previous methods.

The $4,117,662.00 grant to Penn State, a public research university and one of the nation's first land-grant institutions, will leverage the team's heritage in designing and flying spectrometer components on rockets. This effort will also provide hands-on training of young scientists in X-ray astronomy instrumentation and observation techniques. The contract does not have a set-aside designation and is set to conclude on December 31, 2023.

The soft x-RAY background surrounds our local galactic environment yet very little is known about the physical characteristics of this plasma. A high-resolution spectrum could unlock the properties of this million degree gas but the diffuse, low intensity nature of the background have made IT difficult to observe, especially with a dispersive spectrograph. Previous observations have relied on x-RAY detector energy resolution which produces poorly defined spectra that are poorly fit by complex plasma models. Here we propose a series of suborbital rocket flights that will begin the characterization of this elusive source through high-resolution x-RAY grating spectroscopy. The rocket-based spectrograph can resolve individual emission lines over the soft x-RAY band and place tight constraints on the temperature, density, abundance, ionization state and age of the plasma. These payloads will draw heavily from the heritage gained from previous rocket missions, while also benefiting from related NASA technology development programs. The pennsylvania state university (PSU) team has a history of designing and flying spectrometer components onboard rockets while also being scientific leaders in the field of diffuse soft x-RAY astronomy. The PSU program will provide hands-on training of young scientists in the techniques of instrumental and observational x-RAY astronomy. The proposed rocket program will also expose these researchers to a full experiment cycle design, fabrication, tolerance analysis, assembly, flight-qualification, calibration, integration, launch, and data analysis using a combination of technologies suitable for adaptation to NASA's major missions. The PSU program in suborbital x-RAY astronomy represents an exciting mix of compelling science, heritage, cutting-edge technology development, and training of future scientists.