Chandra (formerly known as "AXAF") is an X-ray observatory satellite which was successfully launched by NASA on July 23rd 1999.

Instrumentation

Chandra carries two main scientific instruments, a CCD (charge coupled device) imaging spectrometer (ACIS), and a high-resolution camera (HRC), which uses micro-channel plates partly developed at the University of Leicester . The Leicester role in the HRC team is to procure, calibrate, and coat the HRC microchannel plates for delivery to SAO. Further details of the Leicester HRC work is available from the Space Research Centre's MCP pages.

Data Archive and Web Mirror

Data from the Chandra mission is archived at the Chandra X-ray Observatory Center (CXC) at the Center for Astrophysics, in the USA. The LEDAS (Leicester Database and Archive Service) is currently mirroring the Chandra web pages, proposal preparation tools and analysis software, providing a fast, reliable and free service to UK (and European) users. The LEDAS is also hosting the first Chandra Science Data Archive outside the USA.