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Title:  The Invisible Sky ROSAT And The Age Of X-Ray Astronomy

Author:  Bernd Aschenbach, Hermann-Michael Hahn, Joachim Trumper
Edition: NA
ISBN: 0-387-94928-3
Date: 1998
Publisher: Springer-Verlag
Binding: Hard Cover
Size approximately (inches): 11-1/4 x 9-1/2
Pages: 175

Book Condition: Good. Previously owned.  With dust jacket. Dust jacket has some edge rolling and minor tears. The rear of the dust jacket has a tear and a fold. 

Special Notes: NA

About the book*

Launched in 1990, ROSAT opened a new window to the universe by detecting X-rays emitted by cosmic sources, revealing phenomena invisible to optical telescopes. The book details the journey from the early challenges in X-ray astronomy to the successful deployment of ROSAT, highlighting its significant contributions, such as the discovery of over 120,000 X-ray sources. These findings have enhanced our understanding of various celestial objects, including black holes, supernovae, quasars, and even X-ray emissions from the Moon and comets like Hyakutake.

Through engaging narratives and vivid imagery, the authors convey the scientific and technical milestones achieved by ROSAT, emphasizing its role in transforming our perception of the cosmos. The book serves as both a historical account and an accessible introduction to the complexities of X-ray astronomy.

Chapter List:

1. Preface

2. Introduction

3. The Invisible Sky

4. The History of X-Ray Astronomy

   • X-Rays from the Sun?

   • A Fortuitous Discovery

   • Filling up the Sky

   • The Moon as Observing Assistant

   • Rotating Blinders

   • With Uhuru Toward New Frontiers

   • Cygnus Cycles

   • Magnetic Remote Sensing

   • Einstein and EXOSAT

5. ROSAT—Creating a Satellite

   • A New Type of Detector

   • A Key Experience

   • Pulsars—Energy Beacons in the Universe

   • The HEXE Balloon Program

   • The Search for the Black Hole

   • Contacts with Moscow

   • ROSAT—The ROentgen SATellite Project

   • Grazing Reflections

   • Technical Preparations

   • Difficult Production

   • How to Glue Glass to Metal?

   • ROSAT Goes International

   • Imaging of X-Rays

   • An Artificial "Optic Nerve"

   • Building a Satellite

   • Commands from Bavaria

   • Early Morning Shock

   • The Most Accurate X-Ray Map

   • Astro-Navigation for ROSAT

6. X-Ray Astronomy in Our Galaxy

   • X-Rays from a Comet

   • X-Rays from the Moon

   • The Demystification of the Sky

   • The Sun as a Prototypical Star

   • What Heats the Corona?

   • The Hertzsprung-Russell Diagram

   • Helpful Mass Screenings

   • Magnetic Fields Determine X-Ray Luminosity

   • ROSAT Registers Strongest X-Ray Burst

   • X-Ray Views into Cosmic Delivery Rooms

   • X-Rays from the Sirius System

   • The End of a Solar-Type Star

   • Consequences of Proximity

   • The Source of the X-Rays

   • Magnetic White Dwarfs

   • A Mysterious Gap

   • Exploding Stars

   • Supernova 1987 A

   • ROSAT's First Measurements

   • The Fast Supernova 1993

   • Galactic Supernovae

   • A Stellar Explosion in the Stone Age

   • Supersonic Stellar Debris

   • Pulsars in X-Rays

   • Revealing Cooling

   • Enigma Geminga

   • Classical X-Ray Binaries

   • Difficult Search

   • Black Holes

   • The Particle Slingshot SS 433

   • Impenetrable Clouds

   • A Hot Neighborhood

   • Bubbles in the Milky Way

   • The Galactic Center

   • Perhaps a Black Hole?

7. X-Ray Astronomy Outside Our Galaxy

   • Our Nearest Neighbors

   • Fusion Processes on the Surface

   • A New X-Ray Pulsar

   • Super-Bubbles in the LMC

   • The 30 Doradus Complex

   • The Andromeda Galaxy

   • Starburst Galaxies

   • Active Galaxies

   • An End to the Confusing Variety

   • Multispectral Cooperation

   • Gigantic Energy Beacons

   • Clusters of Galaxies

   • A Deep View Through the Lockman Hole

8. Epilogue

9. List of Acronyms

10. Index

This comprehensive structure guides readers through the evolution of X-ray astronomy, the technical intricacies of the ROSAT mission, and the groundbreaking discoveries that have expanded our understanding of the universe.

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