Toward the event horizon with Astro-H

在大多数星系的中心都存在着一个比太阳大几百万甚至几十亿倍的超大质量黑洞。 其中一些怪物非常活跃，它们可以使周围的物质比其宿主星系中的所有恒星都亮。 最接近黑洞的物质，就在它即将跳出事件视界时，受到宇宙中最剧烈的条件的影响。 黑洞的极端引力可以将恒星撕裂，并以接近光速的速度将物质抛向周围，然后最终被吞噬。 有时这种物质会被猛烈地抛出，以至于它完全从黑洞区域被抛出，并被抛回星系附近，在那里它可能对宿主星系的条件产生巨大的影响。 离黑洞最近的物质被加热到数百万度甚至更热，并以X射线能量辐射。对这些活动星系核（AGN）的X射线观测可能是研究黑洞环境中奇异物理学的唯一途径。 环境是什么样子的？黑洞在成长吗？它在转吗？落入黑洞的物质是由什么组成的？ 重力是如何扭曲这种物质的？ 黑洞对由正常恒星和行星组成的宿主星系有什么影响？ 这些只是我的团队在这项工作中要解决的几个问题。加拿大已投资800万美元开发技术，加拿大天文-H计量系统（CAMS），用于下一代国际X射线使命称为天文-H。 空间使命将于2015年冬季发射，并将携带用于研究活动星系核的最具创新性的仪器。 Astro-H将具有X射线中最上级的能量分辨率，提供确定黑洞周围物质成分及其运动方向和速度的手段。 Astro-H将有可能同时收集最低和最高能量的X射线。 这种能力将被用来确定黑洞环境中的几何形状，甚至确定黑洞是否在旋转。对于加拿大的技术贡献，我们的学生将有权获得Astro-H的新黑洞数据。 我们的加拿大学生将回答这个研究计划提出的基本问题。 我们正在为加拿大建立一个新的研究领域的能力和知识-一个需要技术发展来对抗自然界最奇特的生物的领域。

A supermassive black hole that is millions or even billions of times more massive than the Sun resides at the centres of most galaxies. Some of these monsters are so active that they can make the surrounding material shine brighter than all the stars in its host galaxy. The material closest to the black hole, just as it is about to plunge beyond the event horizon, is subjected to the most violent conditions in the Universe. The extreme gravity of the black hole can tear stars apart and fling matter around at velocities close to the speed of light before it is finally ingested. Sometimes this material can be thrown out so violently that it is completely ejected from the black hole region and hurled back into the galactic neighbourhood where it may have a resounding effect on the conditions in the host galaxy. The matter closest to the black hole is heated to millions of degrees or even hotter, and it radiates at X-ray energies.******X-ray observations of these active galactic nuclei (AGN) may be the only way to study the exotic physics at work in the black hole environment. What does the environment look like? Is the black hole growing? Is it spinning? What is the material that is falling into the black hole made of? How does gravity distort this material? What effects does the black hole have on its host galaxy that is made up of normal stars and planets? These are only a few of the questions that my team will be tackling over the course of this work.******Canada has invested $8M to develop technology, the Canadian Astro-H Metrology System (CAMS), for the next generation international X-ray mission called Astro-H. The space mission will launch in Winter 2015 and will carry with it the most innovative instruments for studying AGN. Astro-H will have the most superior energy resolution available in X-rays providing the means to determine the composition of the material around black holes, and the direction and velocity at which it is moving. Astro-H will have the potential to simultaneously collect the lowest- and the highest-energy X-rays. This capability will be utilised to determine the geometry in the black hole environment and even establish if the black hole is spinning.******For Canada's technical contribution, our students will have proprietary access to new black hole data from Astro-H. Our Canadian students will be the ones answering the fundamental questions posed by this research programme. We are building capacity and knowledge in a new area of research for Canada - one that requires technology development to confront Nature's most exotic creatures.**