National

Regional

Taiwan, HK, Macao

Special Coverage

Focus

Society

Profiles

China's first space telescope anticipated to be launched in 2012

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-07-23 20:21

BEIJING: The predicted launch time of China's first space telescope is in 2012, and will be used to observe space black holes, said the chief scientist of the program Thursday.

The Hard X-ray Modulation Telescope (HXMT) comprises three to four single telecopes equipped with hard X-ray detectors, instead of optical lenses, said Li Tipei, an academician with the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

Related readings:  China's finest telescope to trace universe's origin  World's largest telescope to be built in Hawaii  Astronauts finish repairs on Hubble telescope  China to build world's largest radio telescope  Sharpest telescope heralds China's ambition in deep space quest

"The detectors are much more sensitive to black holes compared with  optical lenses," Li said.

The space telescope and its carrier satellite would weigh about one tonne. It was expected to enter orbit approximately 500 kilometers over the Earth's surface, and circle the Earth for four years, Li said.

The launch, which would cost 1 billion yuan (US$146 million), had been scheduled for 2010, but it was postponed for two years due to financial problems, Li said, giving no further elaborations.

The mission was initiated by China's Ministry of Science and Technology, Tsinghua University and the CAS in 2000.

So far, the ground prototype of the HXMT is completed, with all the key technical difficulties being overcome, Li said.