The Advanced Imaging X-ray Satellite (AXIS)

The Advanced X-ray Imaging Satellite (AXIS) is a probe-class concept that will extend and enhance the science of high angular resolution X-ray imaging and spectroscopy in the next decade with a ~1” angular resolution over a wide 24’x24’ field of view and an order of magnitude more collecting area than Chandra in the 0.3-12 keV band, while providing rapid response capabilities for transients and gravitational wave sources. AXIS will open new windows on the hot and dynamic Universe revealing the birth and early growth of supermassive black holes, their impact on galaxies, and the drivers behind the most powerful and diverse explosive events in the Universe, and the aftermath or diversity of compact stellar remnants. With a nominal early 2030s launch, AXIS benefits from natural synergies with the WFIRST, ELTs, LSST, SKA, ALMA, ATHENA, and CTA. AXIS utilizes breakthroughs in the construction of lightweight X-ray optics from mono-crystalline silicon blocks, and developments in the fabrication of large format, low noise, high readout rate detectors allowing a robust and cost-effective design. In this short talk, I give a top-level overview of AXIS by way of introduction to the rest of the session.