- India's first X-ray Polarimeter satellite (XPoSat) will be launched by Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) from Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota.
- Its purpose is to investigate the polarization of intense X-ray sources.
- However, space-based X-ray astronomy has become established in India.
- It primarily focuses on imaging, time-domain studies and spectroscopy, with the upcoming XPoSat mission marking a major value addition in this.
- This research, complementing traditional time and frequency domain studies, introduces a new dimension to X-ray astronomy, generating anticipation and excitement within the scientific community.
- The XPoSat spacecraft carrying two scientific payloads is designated for observations from low Earth orbit.
- The names of these two payloads are POLIX (Polarimeter Instrument in X-ray) and XSPECT (X-ray Spectroscopy and Timing).
- With these two payloads, the XPoSat mission is able to simultaneously study the temporal, spectral, and polarization characteristics of bright X-ray sources.
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