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HEA: Missions:
Gen-X:
Vision Mission Study
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Vision Mission Study
The NASA-funded Generation-X Vision Mission Study in 2004-2005 investigated the
science requirements, mission concepts and technology drivers for an X-ray
telescope designed to study the new frontier of astrophysics: the birth and
evolution of the first stars, galaxies and black holes in the early Universe.
The mission considered was an X-ray observatory with 100 m2
collecting area at 1 keV and 0.1 arcsecond angular resolution. The baseline
architecture was six 8 m-diameter X-ray telescopes operating at Sun-Earth L2.
This was traded against an alternate concept of a single 20 m diameter
telescope with focal plane instruments on a separate spacecraft. The Gen-X
Vision Mission Study also investigated the suite of required detectors,
including a large FOV high angular resolution imager (wide field imager), a
cryogenic imaging spectrometer (micro- calorimeter), and a reflection grating
spectrometer. The new technology required to implement the mission was laid
out and a technology development roadmap presented.
Architecture
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| Gen-X Vision Mission Architecture Options:
single mirror formation flying (left) and one spacecraft from the fixed optical
bench 6-telescope configuration (right). |
PI and Co-I Study Team
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