Close-up View of NICER’s X-Ray Optics
Credit | NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center/Keith Gendreau |
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Historical Date | August 6, 2017 |
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In this photo, NASA's Neutron star Interior Composition ExplorR’s (NICER's) X-ray concentrator optics are inspected under a black light for dust and foreign object debris that could impair functionality once in space. The payload’s 56 mirror assemblies concentrate X-rays onto silicon detectors to gather data that will probe the interior makeup of neutron stars, including those that appear to flash regularly, called pulsars.