Long March 2C | Einstein Probe

mission

Name

Einstein Probe

Type

Astrophysics

Target orbit

Low Earth Orbit (LEO)

The Einstein Probe (EP) is a Chinese Wide-Field X-ray astronomy observatory for detecting high energy flashes of cataclysmic cosmic events. These includes tidal disruption events (stars pulled apart by supermassive black holes), supernovae, and high-energy, electromagnetic counterparts of gravitational wave events. The spacecraft, weighing ~1400 kilograms, will be launched into a 600-kilometer-high, low-inclination orbit. The probe's instruments include a Wide-field X-ray Telescope (WXT) with a field of view of 3,600 square degrees, employing cutting-edge "lobster eye" optics to view X-ray events more deeply and widely than previously possible, and a Follow-up X-ray Telescope (FXT), developed in collaboration with Europe, that performs follow-up detailed observations as soon as WXT detects an X-ray event. The Einstein Probe mission is managed by the NSSC, with participation from the CAS's NAOC, the Institute of High Energy Physics (IHEP), the Shanghai Institute of Technical Physics (SITP), and the Innovation Academy for Microsatellites, a spacecraft manufacturer that has previously produced space science and Beidou navigation spacecraft. The European Space Agency is contributing to the mission with a mirror module for the FXT instrument, as well as ground station and science management support. The FXT instrument is also supported by Germany's Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics.

schedule

NET (no earlier than)

Jan 09, 2024, 07:03 UTC

Window opens

Jan 09, 2024, 06:51 UTC

Window closes

Jan 09, 2024, 07:52 UTC

Last updated

Jan 09, 2024, 13:40 UTC

vehicle & provider

Rocket

Long March 2C

Family

Long March

Variant

C

Provider

China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation

Type

Government

Country

CHN

webcasts

• Einstein Probe launch