RXTE begins operation of 750th week in orbit

XRay Binary

The Bruno Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer, launched on December 30, 1995, completed its 750th consecutive week of observing a variety of cosmic X-ray sources from low Earth orbit in mid-June. RXTE, as it is known, carries three X-ray telescopes, and has observed 817 different objects in its 15 years of operation. With its large collecting area, fine time resolution, and substantial telemetry rate, RXTE opened the scientific window on processes occurring on millisecond and faster timescales, including quasi-periodic phenomena at kiloHertz frequencies. The flexibility of commanding RXTE to move from one object to the next, as well as a modern scheduling system, has led to an average of 10-20 observations a day. In addition RXTE has the ability to search the sky every 93 minute orbit for new X-ray sources that might flare up at any time and to detect long term (days to years) variability in persistent source. Learn more about RXTE.