Nuclear Compton Telescope
{{Short description|Telescope to observe Gamma-ray sky}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2014}}
The Nuclear Compton Telescope (NCT) is a balloon-borne Compton telescope to observe the gamma-ray sky in the energy range from a few hundred keV to several MeV. Its main goals are to improve the understanding of Galactic nucleosynthesis, gamma-ray bursts, supernovae, black holes, and more.{{cite web|title=NCT|url=http://hea.ssl.berkeley.edu/research/nct/}}
Instrumentation
The Compton telescope uses an array of twelve Germanium detectors with high spectral resolution to detect gamma rays. On its bottom half the detector is surrounded by a Bismuth germanate scintillator to shield it from atmospheric gamma rays. The telescope has an overall field of view (FOV) of 25% of the sky.
Flights
Since low-to-medium-energy gamma rays are only detectable from above the atmosphere, NCT is launched with a large {{convert|1|e6m3|e6ft3|abbr=unit|adj=mid}} Helium balloon into the stratosphere. So far NCT had two successful and one unsuccessful balloon campaigns:
- A two-detector prototype was successfully test flown on 1 June 2005 from the Scientific Balloon Flight Facility, Fort Sumner, New Mexico.{{cite web|last1=Zoglauer|first1=Andreas|title=The Balloon Flights of the Nuclear Compton Telescope NCT|url=http://www.mpe.mpg.de/gamma/science/lines/workshops/AwRVI/Zoglauer_NCT_AwR08.pdf|publisher=Max Planck Institute|accessdate=21 July 2010|author2=Boggs, SE. Bandstra, M. Bellm, E. Perez-Becker, D. Wunderer, CB.|format=PDF|date=9 January 2007|url-status=dead|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20091102211947/http://www.mpe.mpg.de/gamma/science/lines/workshops/AwRVI/Zoglauer_NCT_AwR08.pdf|archivedate=2 November 2009|df=dmy-all}}{{cite web|title=Details of the balloon and launch operations|url=http://stratocat.com.ar/fichas-e/2009/FSU-20090517.htm|publisher=Stratocat|accessdate=21 July 2010}}
- On 19 May 2009, the full instrument successfully launched from Fort Sumner in New Mexico and was able to observe the Crab pulsar.{{cite web |last1=Huang' |first1=Ming-Huey |title=The Nuclear Compton Telescope (NCT): a status report after 2009 balloon flight |url=http://www.srl.utu.fi/AuxDOC/kocharov/ICRC2009/pdf/icrc0952.pdf |work=PROCEEDINGS OF THE 31st ICRC, ŁODZ 2009|publisher=Nuclear Compton Telescope team|accessdate=21 July 2010|author2=Ming-Huey A. Huang'|author3=Amman, M. Bandstra, ME. Bellm, E.|display-authors=etal|format=PDF}}
- Unfortunately, on 28 April 2010 a launch mishap occurred at Alice Springs, Australia, when the gondola release mechanism failed, leading to the partial destruction of the gondola.{{cite news|title=Nasa space balloon crashes into car during takeoff |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/space/7649844/Nasa-space-balloon-crashes-into-car-during-takeoff.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100430060504/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/space/7649844/Nasa-space-balloon-crashes-into-car-during-takeoff.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=30 April 2010|publisher=The Daily Telegraph (Telegraph.co.uk)|accessdate=21 July 2010|format=Text and video|date=29 April 2010 | location=London | first=Bonnie | last=Malkin}}{{cite web|title=NASA Balloon Suffers Mishap in Australia|url=http://www.nasa.gov/topics/earth/features/balloon_mishap.html|publisher=NASA|accessdate=21 July 2010}}
References
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