What is Hera?
Hera is an interface to software and data provided by the High Energy Astrophysics Science Archive Research Center at NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center. The data are from satellites which detect x-rays and gamma rays from objects such as black holes, neutron stars, galaxies, and supernovae.
This interface has been adapted for use by students, educators, amateur astronomers and the general public, and allows them to use the same software that astronomers use on the same data sets that astronomers analyze. These data may be used for extensions of classroom lessons, science fair projects, research projects, etc.
College Hera guides students through a self-assessed series of
activities, starting with practice interpreting light curves for
binary systems. Students then install Hera access data from the Rossi
X-Ray Timing Explorer satellite (RXTE). Students analyze the data and
compare their results with results in the professional literature. A file of the assessment results can be electronically saved and submitted to the professor.
Download a Power Point Presentation about Hera (1.8 MB)
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