China-France SVOM Astronomy Satellite Speeds Gamma-ray Burst Detections
How can we quickly capture and study gamma-ray bursts? Wei Jianyan, Chinese principal investigator of Space Variable Objects Monitor (SVOM), said the satellite jointly developed by China and France has a response time of about five minutes, breaking the previous record of about 20 minutes. The 930kg (2,050-pound) satellite took hundreds of scientists and engineers nearly two decades to develop. It orbits Earth at 625km (450 miles) above the ground to accurately measure the location and energy of distant, violent explosions known as gamma-ray bursts. The SVOM satellite was successfully launched from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China's Sichuan Province on June 22, 2024.
The French contribution was developed in partnership with research laboratories at the IRFU research institute at CEA, the French atomic energy and alternative energies commission, and at INSU, the national institute of universe science, and IN2P3, the national institute of nuclear and particle physics, both attached to the national scientific research centre CNRS.
It represents a milestone in international space collaboration. Developed jointly by Chinese and French scientists over nearly two decades, SVOM carries two French and two Chinese scientific payloads designed to detect distant space phenomena known as gamma-ray bursts (GRBs). Researchers from both countries believe the SVOM monitoring satellite will help advance their investigations in many fields of astrophysics, including the origins of the universe and of elements on Earth.
"The gamma-ray burst is a tool to observe the early universe. We can observe maybe the first stars. And this is very interesting because this is the only way to do that, said Bertrand Cordier, French lead researcher of the SVOM project.
Wei Jianyan, the Chinese principal investigator of SVOM, said the satellite can help researchers expand their collection of observed astronomical phenomena and better understand the Earth.
"We can discover some special types of gamma-ray bursts, as well as the relatively rare ones. We have already known some common types, as it has been studied for two or three decades. But there are still rare ones, high redshift gamma ray bursts, for example. And very interestingly, it helps us understand where some of the elements on earth come from, including gold and silver that we often wear," he said.
Researchers said the two countries' cooperation will lead to great progress in their research.
"We use China's BeiDou satellite system. If we on the ground see a very interesting target in space, we can tell our satellite to point at it in a matter of minutes. As far as I know, this process used to take 20 minutes in international practice. With the BeiDou system, we can respond in a few minutes, and that's a big step forward. This can be effective in detecting swift events," said Wei.
The BeiDou satellite navigation system is a space-based radio navigation service owned and operated by the China National Space Administration (CNSA).
"China, as you said, has developed several missions that are looking to gamma-ray burst, but we are working together. I'm also involved in the Einstein commission, and the idea is to have a very powerful system with many satellites; the idea is to have a way to work together in order to enhance the scientific study," said Cordier.
Both sides approved the SVOM mission in 2006. It is hoped it will run longer than the satellite's designed lifespan of 5 years into the next decade.
Learn more about the SVOM Mission:
https://svom.cnes.fr/en/SVOM/index.htm
Video Credit: China Global Television Network (CGTN)
Duration: 1 minute, 51 seconds
Release Date: Aug. 26, 2024
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