October 9
The Compton Spectrometer and Imager (COSI)
Speaker: Israel Martinez Castellanos, UMD ASTR / NASA GSFC
Abstract: The Compton Spectrometer and Imager (COSI) is a NASA Small Explorer (SMEX) mission scheduled to launch in 2027. COSI features a wide-field-of-view Compton telescope that will explore the under-studied MeV gamma-ray band, from 0.2 to 5 MeV, with unprecedented sensitivity, providing both sky imaging and precise spectroscopic measurements. COSI’s primary science goals are to: (1) uncover the origin of Galactic positrons; (2) reveal how elements form in the Galaxy; (3) gain insight into extreme astrophysical environments through polarization measurements; and (4) probe the physics of multi-messenger events.
In this colloquium, we will describe how COSI works, discuss its capabilities, examine the challenges of analyzing Compton data, and explain how COSI will advance these science goals.
Host: Jillian Rastinejad & Robert Stein