X-RAY TIMING 2003: Rossi and Beyond

X-Ray Timing 2003: Rossi and Beyond

Philip Kaaret, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, MA, USA ; Frederick K. Lamb, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Center for Theoretical Astrophysics, Urbana, IL, USA ; Jean H. Swank, NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center, Laboratory for High Energy Astrophysics, Greenbelt, MD, USA

Conference Location and Date: Cambridge, MA, 3-5 November 2003

Subseries: Astronomy and Astrophysics

Published July 2004; ISBN 0-7354-0193-4, One Volume, Print; 484 pages; 8.5 X 11 inches, double column; Hardcover; $149.50

Readership: Astronomers and physicists: astronomers studying neutron stars and black holes or working in X-ray observations; physicists studying general relativity, gravitation, and nuclear matter.

X-ray timing allows us to probe the behavior of matter in intense gravitational fields close to black holes and neutron stars and also to see X-rays emitted from the surface of neutron stars and thus probe their spins and fundamental properties. NASA's Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) has made great advances in our understanding of neutron stars and black holes since its launch eight years ago. At this conference, the achievements of RXTE were reviewed, with an emphasis on advancements made in the past three years. The scientific need and the technical development of a successor mission to RXTE were also discussed. This volume covers a comprehensive review of the results from one of NASA's major space astronomy observatories. Topics include: scientific challenges for X-ray timing; black hole timing; black hole spectra; jets; active galactic nuclei; millisecond X-ray pulsars; X-ray bursts; soft gamma repeaters and anomalous X-ray pulsars; cataclysmic variables and X-ray pulsars; timing capabilities of planned missions; and instrumentation for X-ray timing.

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