A new space telescope set to launch in Jan. 2024 will look at the cosmos with a revolutionary “lobster eye,” hunting for X-ray bursts that stem from some of the universe’s most powerful phenomena, including feeding black holes, colliding neutron stars and exploding stars
The Einstein Probe is a space telescope that will launch in January 2024. It will use its “lobster eye” design to search for X-ray bursts from powerful cosmic events. These events include:
- Feeding black holes
- Colliding neutron stars
- Exploding stars
- Supernova explosions
The Einstein Probe’s design is inspired by the visual system of lobsters. It has a wide field of view and can capture light from multiple directions. The telescope’s lobster-eye optics take in X-ray light in square tubes in a grid, similar to a lobster’s parallel square pores. This technology allows the Einstein Probe to observe 3,600 square degrees in a single shot.
The Einstein Probe is expected to discover cloaked black holes and map the distribution of black holes in the universe.
Scientists use a variety of technologies to study black holes, including:
- X-ray telescopes X-rays can penetrate large distances and satellite mirrors at grazing angles with minimal diffraction. X-ray telescopes can detect X-rays emitted during space explosions.
- Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) The EHT is a network of radio telescopes that work together to create a virtual telescope the size of Earth. The EHT is named after the “event horizon”, the boundary of a black hole beyond which no light can escape.
- Supercomputers Researchers use supercomputers to create theoretical models for the disks and jets of matter that black holes create around themselves.
- Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) This technique allows for the imaging of far-away objects.
Scientists also use optical, radio, gamma ray, and infrared telescopes to gather data about black holes.
Astronomers can find black holes by measuring the visible light, X-rays, and radio waves emitted by material in the immediate environment of a black hole.
Black holes are studied in the field of astrophysics, which is a branch of astronomy and physics. Astrophysics studies the physical properties and behavior of celestial objects, including black holes, stars, galaxies, and the universe
Black holes are also studied by cosmologists and quantum physicists. For example, Stephen Hawking proved the Hawking effect through quantum physics, which shows that black holes can shrink if they don’t get anything to “suck up”.
Black holes are regions in space where a huge amount of mass is packed into a tiny volume. This creates a gravitational pull so strong that not even light can escape. Black holes are laboratories for testing fundamental theories that explain how the Universe works on the largest and the smallest scales.
The Einstein Probe is equipped with a new generation of X-ray instruments with high sensitivity and a very wide view. It will improve our understanding of these cosmic events by discovering new sources and monitoring the variability of objects shining in X-rays all over the sky.
The Einstein Probe’s unique modular design resembles the eye of a lobster. Lobster eyes have evolved to perceive light through reflection rather than refraction, meaning these crustaceans have a remarkable 180-degree field of vision
The Lobster Eye Imager for Astronomy (LEIA) is a new optical configuration for X-ray telescopes that is similar to the reflective eyes of lobsters. LEIA is designed to provide a wider field of view, allowing scientists to observe a larger area of the universe at once. Traditional X-ray telescopes have a limited field of view, which means that only a small fraction of the universe can be observed at any given time
The Einstein Probe, a new space telescope set to launch in January 2024, will use its “lobster eye” to search for X-ray bursts. The Einstein Probe is named after the iconic physicist and is set to explore the cosmos with its advanced X-ray vision
Lobsters have specialized eyes that can detect motion in low-light environments. Their eyes are made up of thousands of square-shaped tubes that are lined with a reflective surface. This structure allows light from all directions to reflect in the tubes and converge on the retina, giving the lobster a large field of view
Scientists have mimicked the structure of lobster eyes to build visual equipment for missions outside of Earth’s orbit. This equipment can capture stray X-rays and survey much larger areas.
In 1979, an American scientist proposed that the lobster eye be simulated to create a telescope to detect X-rays in space. In 2010, the X-ray Imaging Laboratory of NAOC began research and development work on lobster-eye X-ray imaging technology. They developed lobster-eye glasses, which are covered with tiny square holes as thick as a hair.
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