NASA's latest high-energy astrophysics observatory, NuSTAR, is the first focusing high-energy X-ray mission, opening the hard X-ray sky above 10 keV for sensitive study for the first time. During its mission, NuSTAR will search for black holes, map supernova explosions, and study the most extreme active galaxies.

NuSTAR is a Small Explorer mission led by Caltech and managed by JPL for NASA's Science Mission Directorate. The NuSTAR Mission web site can be found here. NuSTAR data are being archived at the HEASARC.

NuSTAR was launched at 9 am PDT, June 13, 2012 on a Pegasus XL rocket which was dropped from a Lockheed L-1011 "TriStar" aircraft flying over the Pacific Ocean near the Kwajalein Atoll.

During its two-year primary mission phase, NuSTAR has been observing selected regions of the sky in order to:

1. Probe obscured active galactic nucleus (AGN) activity out to the peak epoch of galaxy assembly in the universe (at z <~ 2) by surveying selected regions of the sky;

2. Study the population of hard X-ray-emitting compact objects in the Galaxy by mapping the central regions of the Milky Way;

3. Study the non-thermal radiation in young supernova remnants (SNR), both the hard X-ray continuum and the emission from the radioactive element ⁴⁴Ti;

4. Observe blazars contemporaneously with ground-based radio, optical, and TeV telescopes, as well as with Fermi and Swift, so as to constrain the structure of AGN jets; and

5. Observe line and continuum emission from core-collapse supernovae in the Local Group, and from nearby Type Ia events, to constrain explosion models.

NuSTAR Users' Committee: The NuSTAR Users' Committee (NUC) is a group of 5-10 astrophysicists representing a wide range of community interests who provide the NuSTAR project with broad-based input about the needs and priorities of the NuSTAR user community during the extended operational mission phase. The NUC is the primary interface between the NuSTAR community and the NuSTAR project and NASA headquarters and assists the NuSTAR Principal Investigator and Project Scientist during NuSTAR's operational phase and in preparation for future Senior Reviews.

NuSTAR Announcement E-mail List: If you would like to receive NuSTAR announcement e-mails please send an e-mail with 'subscribe' in the subject to nustargo-join -at- lists.nasa.gov. If you no longer wish to receive NuSTAR announcement e-mails please send an email with 'unsubscribe' in the subject to nustargo-leave -at- lists.nasa.gov.

NuSTAR Helpdesk: If you have questions regarding NuSTAR, concerning, e.g., calibration, analysis, proposing, ToOs, or coordination, please use HEASARC's Feedback form , or click the "HELP" icon to the left.

For those interested in general astronomy/astrophysics information please go to our Education and Public Outreach site.