Active High-Energy Astrophysics Missions

These are the operating high energy astrophysics missions

• AMS-02 - The second Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer is a cosmic ray detector mounted on the ISS. It monitors particles with high precision for heavy nuclei up to and beyond iron. (2011 – present)
• AstroSat - The Astronomy Satellite , AstroSat, is India’s first multiwavelength astronomy satellite, with significant X-ray capabilities: 0.3–80 keV (imaging), 10–150 keV (coded mask) and 2–10 keV (all-sky monitor). (2015 – present)
• BlackCAT - The Black hole Coded Aperture Telescope is a NASA CubeSat developed by Penn State University. It uses a coded-mask aperature telescope in the energy range 0.5–20 keV to look for very high redshift gamma-ray bursts and other transient event. (Jan 2026 – present)
• CALET - The CALorimetric Electron Telescope, CALET, is an experiment on the International Space Station that investigates possible nearby sources of high-energy electrons, galactic particle acceleration and propagation, and studies Gamma-ray Bursts. (2015 – present)
• Chandra - The satellite is in 64-hour highly eccentric Earth orbit and has an unprecedented sub-arcsecond X-ray imaging capability as well as both medium-resolution CCDs and high-resolution gratings. (1999 – present)
• DAMPE - The Dark Matter Particle Explorer (DAMPE) is an high-energy gamma-ray observatory used to detect electrons and protons (5 GeV – 10 TeV), aimed to identify possible dark matter signatures, and cosmic ray nuclei up to 100 TeV. (2015 – present)
• Einstein Probe - The Einstein Probe satellite uses lobster-eye X-ray optics to monitor large fields-of-view with moderate spatial and energy resolution in search of transient events, coupled to a more conventional X-ray telescope for onboard follow up status. The combined instruments cover the energy range from 0.3–10 keV. (2024 – present)
• Fermi - Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope is a Gamma-ray observatory studies the cosmos in the 30 MeV to 10 GeV range with unprecedented sensitivity and spatial resolution. (2008 – present)
• GECAM - The Chinese Gravitational wave high-energy Electromagnetic Counterpart All-sky Monitor (GECAM) is a pair of satellites (also known as GECAM-A and GECAM-B) looking for observe the entire sky at X-ray/gamma-ray wavelengths (8 keV – 2 MeV) to find counterparts to GW events, while also recording ultra-long GRBs, X-ray flash sources, and other transient events. (2020 – present)
• GRB Beta - GRB Beta is a 2U CubeSat proof-of-concept mission, a succesor to the smaller GRB Alpha mission, and leading to the development of the future CAMELOT mission proposal. (Jul 2024 – present)
• HXMT - The Hard X-ray Modulation Telescope (HXMT), named “Insight”, is China’s first X-ray astronomy satellite, aimed to scan the Galactic plane to find new transients, monitor variable sources and study the Gamma Ray Bursts. It’s energy range is 1–250 keV. (Jan 2018 – present)
• IXPE - The Imaging X-ray Polarimetry Explorer (IXPE) is a polarimeter mission working in the energy band between 2–8 keV with proportional counter resolution and sub-arcminute spatial resolution. (2021 – present)
• MAXI - The Monitor of All-sky X-ray Image (MAXI) is an experiment on board the International Space Station to survey and monitor the all sky in the energy range between 0.5–30 keV using the Gas Slit Cameras (GSC) and Solid-state Slit Cameras (SSC). (2009 – present)
• NuSTAR - The Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array is the first focusing medium- to high-energy (5–80 keV) X-ray mission with sub-arcminute angular resolution and ≤1.2 keV spectral resolution. (2012 – present)
• SRG - Spectrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG) primary science is to carry out the first sensitive all sky-survey in the energy range 0.3–40 keV. The sky survey is mapped using two instruments: eROSITA covering the lower part on the band in the 0.3–10 keV range and the ART-XC operating in the 4–30 keV. The eROSITA instrument discontinued active science operations and was placed in a safe mode in February 2022, and there are no current plans to re-activate it. The ART-XC observational program has continued. (2019 – present)
• Space-based astronomical Variable Object Monitor (SVOM) [Sino-French GRB mission] - with a 4–150 keV coded-mask telescope, a non-imaging gamma-ray (50 keV – 5 MeV) spectrometer, an optical telescope, and a microchannel X-ray (0.2–10 keV) telescope with lobster-eye optics. (2024 – present)
• Swift Gamma-Ray Burst mission - The satellite, also known as the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, is capable of autonomous spacecraft response when a GRB is detected, enabling it to obtain accurate position estimates within minutes of the events and to conduct prompt follow-up multiwavelength (X-ray, UV and optical) observations. (2004 – present)
• XMM-Newton - An X-ray observatory in a 48-hour highly eccentric Earth orbit with a very large collecting area and both medium-resolution CCDs and high-resolution gratings as well as the capability to conduct simultaneous X-ray & optical observations. (1999 – present)
• XPoSat - The X-ray Polarimetry Satellite (XPoSat) is an Indian mission to study the polarization characteristics of a number of known bright sources, as well as timing and spectral measurements. The payload covers the energy range 0.8–30 keV betwen the POLIX and XSPECT instruments. (2024 – present)
• X-ray Imaging and Spectroscopy Mission (XRISM) [JAXA/NASA with ESA participation] - A high-throughput, high-resolution spectroscopy mission, consisting of a narrow-field, high-resolution (ΔE ~5–7 eV) soft X-ray (E ~0.3–12 keV) spectrometer and a wider-field soft X-ray (0.5–12 keV) imager, i.e., similar to the SXS and SXI, respectively, flown on Hitomi (2023 – present).