How are cosmic elements synthesized in stars and supernovae?
The newASTROGAM spectral line sensitivity will be up to one order of magnitude better than that of any previous or planned mission. With deep exposures of the Galactic plane region newASTROGAM will determine how different chemical elements are created in stars, novae, supernovae and neutron star mergers.
What are the sources of very high-energy neutrinos and gravitational waves?
newASTROGAM will identify radiative counterparts to gravitational-wave (GW) and high-energy neutrino sources, following the successful path opened by the Fermi Gamma-ray observatory.
How are cosmic particles accelerated to extreme energies?
Observations of relativistic jets, outflows, and shocks both in and outside our galaxy in the X-ray and GeV-TeV energy ranges have shown that the MeV-GeV band is of key importance. newASTROGAM will provide unprecedented information in this energy regime.
Europe's next Gamma-ray observatory
Gamma rays provide unique insights into the astrophysics of nucleosynthesis, accretion onto compact objects, acceleration of particles, intense magnetic fields, and extreme gravity environments. They reveal high-energy phenomena that have a lasting influence on cosmic evolution.
Planned to cover the energy range from 0.01 MeV to 3 GeV, newASTROGAM will for the first time open the MeV γ-ray energy range for sensitive exploration and bridge to higher (GeV to TeV) energies. With at least an order of magnitude better sensitivity than any previous, current, or planned MeV mission, it will achieve spectacular improvements in source localisation and energy resolution.
For the first time it will provide polarisation capabilities in the MeV energy range, promising unique clues about emission processes (for example decisive insights into the presence of hadrons in jets), source geometry, and magnetic-field structure for objects like Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs), Active Galactic Nuclei (AGN), binaries, or pulsar wind nebulae.
Why now?
newASTROGAM will be a cornerstone of multi-wavelength and multi-messenger astronomy in the 2030s. It will work in concert with observatories like LISA, next generation gravitational wave observatories, IceCube-Gen2, KM3NeT, SKA, ALMA, Roman Space Telescope, Vera Rubin Observatory, ELT, and CTAO.
With newASTROGAM we will gain new insights in:
- Extreme acceleration processes
- Black-hole activity at Cosmic Dawn
- Cosmic-ray sources and feedback on galaxy evolution
- The multi-messenger and energetic transient sky
- Explosive nucleosynthesis and chemical evolution of the Interstellar Medium
- Dark matter, exotic particles, primordial black holes, new physics in general
- Observatory science in the MeV–GeV domain
Observations
newASTROGAM will conduct pointed and survey observations according to the key science goals.
In addition to addressing its key science topics, the combination of a wide field of view, the survey mode operation, and the leap in sensitivity of newASTROGAM will result in serendipitous discoveries. A catalogue of nearly a thousand galactic and extragalactic sources will come out of this mission each year and cater the worldwide astronomical community.
Further reading / Publications:
- White Book for ESA’s Voyage Review (August 2019)
- enhanced ASTROGAM Detector paper: https://arxiv.org/abs/1611.02232, Exp. Astronomy 2017, 44, 25-82
- Science White Book e-ASTROGAM: https://arxiv.org/abs/1711.01265, J. High Energy Astrophysics 2018, 19, 1-106
- ...more to come...
What would YOU observe?
The mission is evolving. Stay up to date about recent developments, help us make newASTROGAM even better and let us know what drives your science with newASTROGAM.
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