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IXPE

The Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) is a space observatory built to discover the secrets of some of the most extreme cosmic objects – the remnants of supernova explosions, neutron stars, powerful particle streams ejected by feeding black holes, and more. IXPE is NASA’s first mission to study the polarization of X-rays from many different types of celestial objects. Measuring the polarization of X-rays traces the story of where this light came from, including the geometry and inner workings of its source.

This image shows the Vela pulsar wind nebula. Light blue represents X-ray polarization data from NASA’s Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer....
A white spot in the middle of a blue/pink/purple hazy circle. Orange stars are dotted across a black space background.
Using data from NASA’s Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE), international researchers have uncovered new information about the Tycho supernova remnant,...
A purple pink circle in the middle of the vastness of space and stars represents an exploded star.
A Ball Aerospace engineer checks out the Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer spacecraft at Ball test facilities in Boulder, Colorado. IXPE...
A Ball Aerospace engineer checks out the Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer spacecraft at Ball test facilities in Boulder, Colorado.
This illustration shows NASA’s IXPE spacecraft, at right, observing blazar Markarian 501, at left. A blazar is a black hole...
A black hole surrounded by an accretion disk with a jet protruding out of it, and a zoomed-in view of the jet showing different kinds of light being emitted after the particles hit the shock wave.
When a massive star collapsed in the Cassiopeia constellation, it generated a supernova explosion with some of the fastest shockwaves...
Composite images of the Cas A supernova remnant that looks like a spherical cloud resembles a hazy ball of turquoise and neon blue lightning, marbled with veins of gold.
An illustration of an accreting pulsar, or a type of powerful, rotating neutron star actively feeding off a companion star.
An illustration of an accreting pulsar, or a type of powerful, rotating neutron star actively feeding off a companion star.
A gif of IXPE deploying in space before starting its science operations to study the cosmos.
A gif of IXPE deploying in space before starting its science operations to study the cosmos.
Illustration of NASA’s Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE).
Illustration of NASA’s Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE).
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches with NASA’s Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) spacecraft onboard from Launch Complex 39A, Thursday,...
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches with NASA’s Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) spacecraft onboard
An enormous swirling vortex of hot gas glows with infrared light, marking the approximate location of the supermassive black hole...
An enormous swirling vortex of hot gas glows with infrared light, marking the approximate location of the supermassive black hole at the heart of our Milky Way galaxy.
With polarization data from Cassiopeia A, IXPE will allow scientists to see, for the first time, how the amount of...
Cassiopeia A.
NASA’s Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) Encapsulation
IXPE spacecraft encapsulation at Kennedy Space Center
The Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer spacecraft array, undergoing testing and integration at Ball Aerospace test facilities in Boulder, Colorado. A...
Testing IXPE at Ball Aerospace Facilities.
An artist's rendering of the Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) mission traveling through space.
NASA’s Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer, post-integration, inside Ball Aerospace cleanroom facilities in Boulder, Colorado.
IXPE Spacecraft Ready for Integrated Testing
The galaxy Centaurus A (Cen A) shines bright in this image combining data from multiple observatories. In the center of...
The galaxy Centaurus A (Cen A) shines bright in this image combining data from multiple observatories. In the center of this galaxy is a supermassive black hole feeding off the gas and dust encircling it, and large jets of high-energy particles and other material spewing out
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket soars upward after liftoff from the launch pad at Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy...
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket soars upward after liftoff from the launch pad at Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida at 1 a.m. EST on Thursday, Dec. 9, 2021.
The Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer spacecraft stands fully integrated and cleared to fly at Ball Aerospace test facilities in Boulder,...
IXPE Spacecraft Ready to Fly.
A Ball Aerospace engineer prepares the Imaging X-Ray Polarimetry Explorer spacecraft boom for testing at Ball’s Boulder, Colorado, test facility....
IXPE Spacecraft Undergoes Spacecraft Boom Testing
NASA Selects Proposals to Study Neutron Stars, Black Holes, and More
A montage of images