High Energy Astronomy Observatory 2
| HEAO-2 | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Type: | Space telescope |
| Country: |
 United States
|
| Operator: | NASA |
| COSPAR-ID : | 1978-103A |
| Mission dates | |
| Dimensions: | 3150 kg |
| Size: | 5.68 m high, 2.67 m diameter |
| Begin: | November 13, 1978, 05:24 UTC |
| Starting place: | Cape Canaveral LC-36B |
| Launcher: | Atlas - Centaur SLV-3D |
| Status: | burned up on March 25, 1982 |
| Orbit data | |
| Rotation time : | 95.4 min |
| Orbit inclination : | 23.5 ° |
| Apogee height : | 548 km |
| Perigee height : | 526 km |
The High Energy Astronomy Observatory 2 (also HEAO-2 or HEAO B ), also called the Einstein Observatory after its start , was the first large X-ray telescope in space with good image quality.
HEAO-2 was developed by NASA and placed in low earth orbit on November 12, 1978 with an Atlas Centaur rocket from Cape Canaveral . The HEAO-2 satellite, which was in operation until April 1981, had the first large Wolter telescope in space on board. Compared to earlier X-ray satellites , the sensitivity was greatly improved and the spatial resolution of just a few arc seconds was very good. This improvement is based on investigations of crustaceans by Klaus Vogt and was implemented by the astronomer JLG Angel. In addition to the main telescope with four instruments for the energy range 0.15–4.5 keV , it also had an X-ray monitor for the range 1.5–20 keV. With these capabilities, HEAO-2 brought great advances in many areas of X-ray astronomy .
See also
Web links
- NASA's HEAO-2 website
Individual evidence
- ↑ HEAO in the Encyclopedia Astronautica , accessed on July 11, 2011 (English).