Unveiling the secrets of the hot and energetic Universe

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The X-ray Integral Field Unit (X-IFU)

The X-IFU is a revolutionary X-ray spectrometer, one of the two instruments of the European Space Agency’s future space telescope, Athena. It will observe with X-ray eyes, the hot and energetic Universe, a world of clusters of galaxies, black holes, and exploding stars.

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Find out about this revolutionary instrument of ESA’s Athena mission

Latest News

Congratulations to Florent Castellani who defended his thesis

Congratulations to Florent CASTELLANI who defended his thesis entitled “Study of the scientific and instrumental performances of Athena’s X-Ray Integral Field Unit”, on Friday November 17, 2023 at IRAP. 

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Go-ahead for Athena

On Wednesday November 8, 2023, ESA’s Science Programme Committee (SPC) formally and unanimously approved the restart of industrial studies for the Athena mission, still considered as a flagship mission.

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Tribute to our colleague Graziella Branduardi-Raymont

Our colleague Graziella Branduardi-Raymont – Member of the Athena/X-IFU Science Advisory Team – passed away unexpectedly last week.

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People of X-IFU

"By improving spectral and angular resolutions, with such a large effective area, Athena X-IFU will represent a major step for X-ray astronomy."

Jiri Svoboda

Astronomer at the Astronomic Institute of the Czech Academy of Sciences

"When Athena X-IFU will be launched, we will see things humans never observed before."

Kazuhisa Mitsuda

Board member

"Once Athena X-IFU will be launched, observation of the sky will be taken to a whole new level. The instrument should be able to reveal the origin of the universe!"

Teresa Mineo

Physicist at INAF

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