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AXAF, the Advanced X-ray Astrophysics Facility, is the U.S. follow-on to the Einstein Observatory. Originally three instruments and a high-resolution mirror carried in one spacecraft, the project was reworked in 1992 and 1993. The AXAF spacecraft will c arry a high resolution mirror, two imaging detectors, and two sets of transmission gratings. In addition, a cryogenic spectrometer is being developed to fly on the Japanese Astro-E mission. AXAF will be placed in an elliptical high-earth orbit allowing uninterrupted observing intervals up to 24 hours in length.
More information about AXAF can be found at the AXAF Science Center (http://hea-www.harvard.edu/asc/axaf-welcome.html)
Image courtesy of TRW, the AXAF prime contractor.
