Arcus (satellite)

Arcus
	Artist concept of the Arcus satellite on orbit.
Mission type	X-ray space observatory
Operator	NASA
Website	www.arcusxray.org
Mission duration	2–5 years (proposed)
Spacecraft properties
Bus	LEOStar-2 S/C
Manufacturer	Orbital ATK
BOL mass	≈1,142 kg (2,518 lb)
Power	405 W
Start of mission
Launch date	2023 (proposed)
Main telescope
Focal length	12 m (39 ft)
Collecting area	500 cm2 (78 sq in)
Wavelengths	X-ray
	Medium-Class Explorers

Arcus is a proposed X-ray space observatory proposed to NASA's Explorer program, Medium Explorer (MIDEX) class.

The Arcus mission would study galaxies and galaxy clusters using high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy to characterize the interactions between these objects and the diffuse hot gas that permeates them. The Principal investigator is Randall Smith at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Cambridge, Massachusetts; the project has significant contributions from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, cosine Measurement Systems (Warmond NL), Penn State, and the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics.^[2]^[3]

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Cite error: The named reference Smith 2018 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ ^a ^b Cite error: The named reference Harvard Press was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^ ^a ^b NASA selects X-ray mission Arcus for phase A study. SRON. 23 August 2017.