Syed Ashikur Rahman

Nasa and the Italian Space Agency are teaming up to launch their first space observatory, the Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer Mission. Three telescopes on board IXPE measure X-rays emitted by black holes and neutron stars. The imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer satellite will measure the universe's most extreme objects. The satellite will be launched from Nasa's Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 1:00 a.m. ET. The satellite has the capability to detect polarization. Emerging from the abyss X-rays are a type of high-energy light that can be produced by powerful magnetic fields, object collisions, explosions, and extremely high temperatures. Because X-rays cannot reach the ground due to the Earth's atmosphere, scientists must rely on X-ray telescopes in space. According to main investigator Martin Weisskopf, IXPE is a "bold and distinctive step forward for X-ray astronomy."