Goddard Glossary: X-rays

Narration: Katy Mersmann

Transcript:

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X-rays.

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When you think of

X-rays,you might

think of broken bones.

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But here at NASA, X-rays

let us see so much more.

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Unlike taking an X-ray

of our skeleton,

which involves

projecting X-rays

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through our body,

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we look at X-rays naturally

emitted by things like stellar explosions.

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X-rays are part of the electromagnetic spectrum,

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the full spectrum of

energy waves that runs

from radio to gamma rays.

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In the middle of

the spectrum is

visible light,

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the rainbow of color

that human eyes can see. X-rays, emitted by hot gases

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throughout the universe,

are considerably

more energetic than

visible light waves.

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This means the

wavelengths

are quite small,

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so they slip right

between the atoms

of most objects,

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including the mirrors

we use in telescopes

to focus other kinds

of light.

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X-ray telescopes, like

those on Chandra and

JAXA's XRISM spacecraft,

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use specially-

designed mirrors

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set at a shallow angle

to minimize spaces

between the mirrors atoms.

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This allows X-rays to

bounce off the surface

of the mirror,

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like a rock skipping

off the surface of a pond.

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Studying X-rays will

help us unravel mysteries

of our universe,

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like the internal structure of neutron stars

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or near-light-speed jets from black holes.

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It's all about seeing

things in a different wavelength of light.