The launch was scheduled for Feb.12, but was postponed due to unfavorable weather conditions.
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ASTRO-H successfully launched from the Tanegashima Space Center in Japan at 2:45 a.m. Winnipeg time Wednesday.
Researchers are hoping the telescope will reveal in-depth detail about supernovas, black holes and galaxy clusters.
A joint project of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s Institute of Space and Astronautical Science and NASA, the ASTRO-H team brought together 240 scientists from 60 institutions in Japan, North America, and Europe.
It will help scientists survey black holes and distant galaxies in an attempt to unveil the mysteries surrounding the evolution of the universe, JAXA’s release said. Detecting the energy of X-rays using X-ray telescopes can provide clues about the objects that emitted them.
Wednesday’s launch is the twelfth of 2016 worldwide, and the first of the year for Japan.
The space observatory Astro-H is equipped with a cutting edge X-ray micro-calorimeter, which observes a wide range of X-rays from space with the world’s top-level spectral capability. It will maintain orbit near the equator and gather data for three years.
The ASTRO-H satellite is the sixth in a series of Japanese X-ray missions since 1979 and is the successor to the SUZAKU satellite now in space. It was jointly developed by JAXA, the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and other concerns.
In a statement, JAXA said the launch of ASTRO-H on the H-IIA Launch Vehicle No. 30 was successful and that the satellite – which it nicknamed Hitomi – was “currently in good health”.
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According to JAXA, proposals for observations will be accepted from all over the world after launch.
