XPoSat is ISRO's maiden X-ray polarimetry mission, dedicated to analyzing the polarization of X-rays from celestial sources
It offers insights into celestial objects like black holes, neutron stars, active galactic nuclei, pulsars, and nebulae, among others
The space observatory launched by PSLV-C58 is totally women-engineered for the comparison of Solar irradiance and UV index
Two key payloads include POLIX (Indian X-ray Polarimeter) and XSPECT (X-ray Spectroscopy and Timing), by Raman Research Institute and UR Rao Satellite Centre in Bengaluru
POLIX is the world's first instrument designed for the medium X-ray energy band with a collimator and scatterer to observe polarized X-rays from astronomical sources
XSPECT is designed for fast timing and high spectroscopic resolution in the soft X-ray energy band to observe X-ray pulsars, black hole binaries, and active galactic nuclei
X-rays emitted from celestial sources get polarized due to interactions with strong magnetic fields or materials around black holes
NASA's IXPE, launched in 2021, complements XPoSat, but POLIX offers an expanded energy band and highly sensitive and precise instruments