Chandra X-ray Observatory - Discoveries

Discoveries

The data gathered by Chandra have greatly advanced the field of X-ray astronomy.

• The first light image, of supernova remnant Cassiopeia A, gave astronomers their first glimpse of the compact object at the center of the remnant, probably a neutron star or black hole. (Pavlov, et al., 2000)
• In the Crab Nebula, another supernova remnant, Chandra showed a never-before-seen ring around the central pulsar and jets that had only been partially seen by earlier telescopes. (Weisskopf, et al., 2000)
• The first X-ray emission was seen from the supermassive black hole, Sagittarius A*, at the center of the Milky Way. (Baganoff, et al., 2001)
• Chandra found much more cool gas than expected spiralling into the center of the Andromeda Galaxy.
• Pressure fronts were observed in detail for the first time in Abell 2142, where clusters of galaxies are merging.
• The earliest images in X-rays of the shock wave of a supernova were taken of SN 1987A.
• Chandra showed for the first time the shadow of a small galaxy as it is being cannibalized by a larger one, in an image of Perseus A.
• A new type of black hole was discovered in galaxy M82, mid-mass objects purported to be the missing link between stellar-sized black holes and supermassive black holes. (Griffiths, et al., 2000)
• X-ray emission lines were associated for the first time with a gamma-ray burst, Beethoven Burst GRB 991216. (Piro, et al., 2000)
• High school students, using Chandra data, discovered a neutron star in supernova remnant IC 443.
• Observations by Chandra and BeppoSAX suggest that gamma-ray bursts occur in star-forming regions.
• Chandra data suggested that RX J1856.5-3754 and 3C58, previously thought to be pulsars, might be even denser objects: quark stars. These results are still debated.
• Sound waves from violent activity around a supermassive black hole were observed in the Perseus Cluster (2003).
• TWA 5B, a brown dwarf, was seen orbiting a binary system of Sun-like stars.
• Nearly all stars on the main sequence are X-ray emitters. (Schmitt & Liefke, 2004)
• The X-ray shadow of Titan was seen when it transitted the Crab Nebula.
• X-ray emissions from materials falling from a protoplanetary disc into a star. (Kastner, et al., 2004)
• Hubble constant measured to be 76.9 km/s/Mpc using Sunyaev-Zel'dovich effect.
• 2006 Chandra found strong evidence that dark matter exists by observing supercluster collision
• 2006 X-ray emitting loops, rings and filaments discovered around a supermassive black hole within Messier 87 imply the presence of pressure waves, shock waves and sound waves. The evolution of Messier 87 may have been dramatically affected.
• Observations of the Bullet cluster put limits on the cross-section of the self-interaction of dark matter.
• "The Hand of God" photograph of PSR B1509-58.