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CONSIDERATIONS ON METHOD

RICCARDO GIACCONI2012

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TABLE I METHOD

SCIENCE SYSTEM ENGINEERING

Ø LEARN: OBSERV E, READ, REACH STATE OF THE ART Ø THINK: CRITICALLY EXAMINE MATERIAL ABOVE

IS THE FIELD WORTH PURSUING? WHAT CAN YOU BRING TO THE FIELD?

Ø PLAN: AS FAR AHEAD AS YOU CAN SEE, AT LEAST >5 YEARS ? Ø DO: DESIGN, OBTAIN SUPPORT, EXECUTE, USE DATA (END TO

END DATA SYSTEMS)

DECIDE

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GIACCONI, CLARK, ROSSI (1960) SOURCE MAXIMUM MECHANISM ESTIMATED FLUX WAVELENGTH FOR EMISSION SUN < 20 Å CORONAL EMISSION ~ 106 CM-2 S-1 SUN AT 8 LIGHT YEARS < 20 Å CORONAL EMISSION 2.5 X 10-4 CM-2 S-1 SIRIUS IF LX ~ LOPT < 20 Å ? 0.25 CM-2 S-1

NO CONVECTIVE ZONE FLARE STARS < 20 Å SUNLIKE FLARE? ? PECULIAR A STARS < 20 Å B ~ 104 GAUSS

LARGE B ? PARTICLE ACCELERATION

CRAB NEBULA < 25 Å SYNCHROTRON

EE$1013 eV IN B = 10-4 GAUSS ? LIFETIMES?

MOON < 23 Å FLUORESCENCE 0.4 CM-2 S-1 MOON ~ 20 Å IMPACT FROM SOLAR WIND

ELECTRONS 0-1.6 X 103 CM-2 S-1 Φε = 0-1013 CM-2 S-1

SCO X-1 2-8 Å ? 28 ± 1.2 CM-2 S-1

TABLE II THE LEARNING PHASE

SUGGESTION BY B.B.ROSSI 1959

COMPTON & ALLISON 1935; FLUGGE 1956; “RUSSIAN LITERATURE OF SATELLITES” 1958; SUMMARY OF H. FRIEDMAN SOLAR X-RAY WORK 1948-1958; UPPER LIMIT ON EXTRASOLAR SOURCES

12/1959”A TELESCOPE FOR SOFT X-RAY ASTRONOMY” R.GIACCONI & B.ROSSI

1/15/1960 “A BRIEF REVIEW OF EXPERIMENTAL AND THEORETICAL

PROGRESS IN X-RAY ASTRONOMY” AS&E TN 49 R. GIACCONI, G.W. CLARK AND B.B. ROSSI

5/20/1960 SAO “CONFERENCE ON X-RAY ASTRONOMY. “X-RAY

ASTRONOMY IS OF BROADER INTEREST … WE WOULD EXPECT TO SEE DIFFERENT OBJECTS IN MANY CASES THAN THOSE IDENTIFIED ONLY BY THEIR VISIBLE LIGHT” R. GIACCONI

TABLE IIICHANGES IN INSTRUMENTATION (1960)

START DEVELOPMENT OF X-RAY GRAZING INCIDENCE TELESCOPE ( NASA-1960) FIRST SOLAR X-RAY FLIGHT 1963

START SURVEYS WITH IMPROVED DETECTORS (1960) AND MORE SOPHISTICATED

INSTRUMENT DESIGN, (AFCRL 1960)

DEVELOP DETECTORS WITH LARGER AREAS (>10 SQUARE CENTIMETERS 1961)

INCREASE S/N RATIO (~ 10) BY REJECTION OF COSMIC RAY BACKGROUND WITH ANTICOINCIDENCE

USE WIDE FIELDS FOR EXPLORATION (60 DEGREES FWHM) INSTEAD OF 1-10 DEGREES FWHM. GREATER PROBABILITY OF DETECTION. (NRL PREVIOUS UPPER LIMIT ?). OBTAIN BETTER STATISTICS

ROCKET FLIGHTS (1960 AND 1961). FIRST SUCCESFUL FLIGHT 1962, DISCOVERY OF SCO X-1

• 20x LARGER AREA

• 10x IMPROVEMENT ON S/N DUE TO ANTI-COINCIDENCE

• 60° TO IMPROVE CHANCE OF DETECTION

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Nobel Fig. 19

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TABLE IVCONCLUSIONS

• GIVEN THAT THE PHYSICAL NATURE OF 97% OF MATTER IN THE UNIVERSE IS UNKNOWN, IT SEEMS PREMATURE TO THINK THAT THE DISCOVERY ERA IS OVER . I THINK THAT 2012 IS MORE LIKE 1609, WHEN ASTRONOMY LED PHYSICS.

• HIGH ENERGY PHENOMENA ARE KEY TO STRUCTURE FORMATION AND EVOLUTION. THEY ARE THE NORM, NOT THE EXCEPTION.

• X-RAY OBSERVATIONS HAVE SHOWN TO BE ESSENTIAL TO THEIR UNDERSTANDING AND PROVIDE A POWERFUL AND UNIQUE TOOL FOR THEIR STUDY

• WE HAVE THE KNOW-HOW AND THE METHODS TO DEVELOP NEW TECHNOLOGY AND BUILD MORE POWERFUL OBSERVATORIES. IN THE LAST 50 YEARS WE HAVE MADE PROGRESS OF TEN BILLIONS.

• I AM THEREFORE QUITE CERTAIN THAT IN THE NEXT 50 YEARS X-RAY ASTRONOMY WILL REACH NEW HEIGHTS. WE MUST HOWEVER ENSURE THAT THE NEW GENERATION OF ASTRONOMERS WILL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO LEARN – THINK – PLAN AND DO.