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Summary
| Description |
English: "XRS maps the elements in the top millimeter of Mercury’s crust using three gas-filled detectors (Mercury X-Ray Unit, or MXU) pointing at the planet, one silicon solid-state detector pointing at the Sun (Solar Assembly for X-rays, or SAX), and the associated electronics (Main Electronics for X-rays, or MEX). The planet-pointing detectors measure fluorescence, the X-ray emissions coming from Mercury’s surface after solar X-rays hit the planet. The Sun-pointing detector tracks the X-rays bombarding the planet.
XRS detects emissions from elements in the 1-10 kiloelectron-volt (keV) range – specifically, magnesium, aluminum, silicon, sulfur, calcium, titanium, and iron. Two detectors have thin absorption filters that help distinguish among the lower-energy X-ray lines of magnesium, aluminum, and silicon. Beryllium-copper honeycomb collimators give XRS a 12° field of view, which is narrow enough to eliminate X-rays from the star background even when MESSENGER is at its farthest orbital distance from Mercury. The small, thermally protected, solar-flux monitor is mounted on MESSENGER’s sunshade." |
| Source | http://messenger.jhuapl.edu/instruments/XRS.html |
| Author | NASA / JHU/APL |
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This file is in the public domain in the United States because it was solely created by NASA. NASA copyright policy states that "NASA material is not protected by copyright unless noted". (See Template:PD-USGov, NASA copyright policy page or JPL Image Use Policy.) |  |
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| Date/Time | Thumbnail | Dimensions | User | Comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| current | 22:36, 25 January 2011 | | 250 × 191 (18 KB) | Xession | {{Information |Description ={{en|1="XRS maps the elements in the top millimeter of Mercury’s crust using three gas-filled detectors (Mercury X-Ray Unit, or MXU) pointing at the planet, one silicon solid-state detector pointing at the Sun (Solar Assem |
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