COS-B

The COS-B satellite (Credit: ESA)

Lifetime: August 1975 - April 1982

Operator (primary): European Space Research Organization

Primary Science

The primary science of COS-B was to study in detail the sources of extraterrestrial gamma-rays at energies above 30 MeV.

Science Highlights

• Compiled catalog of 25 gamma-rya sources (the 2CG Catalog)
• Studied binary system, Cygnus X-3, which contained a pulsar and gamma-ray emitter
• Made gamma-ray lightcurves of the Vela and Crab nebulas
• Made the first gamma-ray map of the Galactic plane
• First gamma-ray observations of an active galactic nuclues

Links to more information

• COS-B on HEASARC
• COS-B on ESA