The Cosmic Hot Interstellar Plasma Spectrometer (CHIPS) is a
University-Class Explorer (UNEX) mission funded by NASA. It will carry
out all-sky spectroscopy of the diffuse background at wavelengths from
90 to 260 Å with a peak resolution of
 /150 (about 0.5 eV). CHIPS data will
help scientists determine the electron temperature, ionization
conditions, and cooling mechanisms of the million-degree plasma
believed to fill the local interstellar bubble. The majority of the
luminosity from diffuse million-degree plasma is expected to emerge in
the poorly-explored CHIPS band, making CHIPS data of relevance in a
wide variety of Galactic and extragalactic astrophysical environments.
The CHIPS instrument is carried in space aboard CHIPSat, a
dedicated spacecraft built by
SpaceDev, Inc., and
launched
from
the second stage of a
Boeing Delta II rocket.
A
successful launch occurred
at 16:45 Pacific time on Sunday January 12, 2003.
Select one of the following for more information:
LATEST NEWS -
SCIENCE -
ARCHIVE -
INSTRUMENT -
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CHIPS Papers -
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HOME
CHIPS-Related Links
CHIPS Documentation (requires password)
For more information about CHIPS please send an e-mail to
Dr. Mark Hurwitz.
If you have questions about or problems with this web page,
please send an e-mail to
the webmaster.
We gratefully acknowledge the generous support of the following sponsors:
CHIPS on-orbit science data processing is powered by
University of California, Space Sciences Laboratory
7 Gauss Way, Berkeley, CA 94720-7450, USA
Michael Sholl,
CHIPS Project Manager: (510) 486-6340
sholl@ssl.berkeley.edu
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