UK to lead X-ray space telescope team

THE European Space Agency (ESA) has selected a French-German-UK team, led by the UK's Leicester University, to run the X-Ray Multi-Mirror (XMM) space-observatory mission-survey science centre, with UK funding coming from the Particle Physics and Astronomy Research Council. The XMM, described as the "Hubble Space Telescope of X-ray astronomy", to be launched on an Ariane 5 in 1999, as the second ESA Horizon 2000 Cornerstone Mission, will detect between 50 and 200 X-ray sources in each image it produces. The Daimler-Benz Aerospace-built, 3,800kg XMM is equipped with three mirror modules and associated instruments provided by teams led by Italy, the Netherlands and the UK.

Source: Flight International