The University of Leicester announces today the signature of a contract to develop an innovative new type of X-ray mirror for a telescope to be flown on an orbiting observatory to be launched in 2021.
The Space Variable Objects Monitor (SVOM) is a joint Chinese-French satellite observatory. Designed to study the most powerful explosions in the Universe out to the era of the first generation of stars, SVOM will locate hundreds of gamma-ray bursts signifying the deaths of massive stars.
University of Leicester scientists with its Space Research Centre instrumentation and engineering staff in the Department of Physics and Astronomy have developed a unique capability to make a new kind of super-light-weight X-ray focussing optic.
Traditional X-ray mirrors for space telescopes are made of solid glass or metal and weigh tens of kilograms or more. The new 'Lobster' X-ray mirror for SVOM weighs just one kilo, and so is much easier to launch into orbit.
Professor Julian Osborne, who is leading this work at Leicester explained: "Lobsters and similar animals use reflecting mirrors to focus light in their eyes, unlike the lenses used by people. We can make man-made Lobster-type mirrors with the very high degree of smoothness needed to focus X-rays, and make them robust enough to survive the rigours of a rocket launch."
(Score: 1) by pTamok on Tuesday October 27 2015, @05:22PM
If you haven't read it already, read this book which Charlie Stross has kindly made available for free on his website.
http://www.antipope.org/charlie/blog-static/fiction/accelerando/accelerando-intro.html [antipope.org]
Sentient AIs based on uploaded lobster brains. And much, much more.
I do like Charlie Stross's fiction.