MAXI team
Team Leader
Kazuo MAKISHIMA (D.Sci.)
In collaboration with JAXA, Tokyo Tech, Aoyama Gakuin University, Nihon University, Osaka University and a few other institutions, we are conducting observational investigations in high energy astrophysics using the MAXI (Monitor of All-sky X-ray Image) experiment. It was launched by the Space Shuttle in July 2009, and mounted on the Exposed Facility of the Japan Experimental Module "Kibo" comprising the International Space Station. MAXI started its all-sky monitoring observations in August 2009, and has already detected a large number of variation phenomena in cosmic X-ray sources, including black hole binaries, X-ray pulsars, active galactic nuclei, gamma-ray bursts, and flaring stars. We have issued prompt worldwide alerts of these detections, and publicly released the MAXI data. In collaboration with the Swift satellite, we detected, on 2011 March 28, a phenomenon which possibly occurred whien a star was swallowed into a giant black hole at the center of a distant galaxy. The result has been published in Nature.
- Operation and data release of the MAXI mission onboard the International Space Station
- Studies of time variations of cosmic X-ray sources and all-sky monitoring for X-ray transients
- Planning of MAXI2 as a successor to MAXI
- September 22, 2010
- 'Herbivore' black hole identified
- October 17, 2008
- Understanding the flow rate of gas absorbed into black holes through observation of the rapid changes in the characteristic light emitted from black holes using both optical and X-ray telescopes
- August 14, 2009
- Silent strike from thunderclouds
Radiation bursts from thunderclouds may not always be associated with lightning
- May 08, 2009
- Unveiling the black hole
- Burrows, D. N., Kennea, J. A., Ghisellini, G., Mangano, V,; Zhang, B., Page, K. L,; Eracleous, M., Romano, P., et al.:
"Relativistic jet activity from the tidal disruption of a star by a massive black hole"
Nature 476, 462 (2011) - Shidatsu, M., Ueda, Y., Nakahira, S., Negoro, H., Yamaoka, K., Sugizaki, M., Hiroi, K., Kawai, N., et al.:
"Long-Term Monitoring of the Black Hole Binary GX 339-4 in the High/Soft State during the 2010 Outburst with MAXI/GSC"
Publ. Astron. Soc. Japan 63S, 803 (2011) - Serino, M., Yoshida, A., Kawai, N., Nakagawa, Y., Mihara, T., Ueda, Y., Nakahira, S., Eguchi, S., Hiroi, K., et al.:
"Peculiarly Narrow SED of GRB 090926B with MAXI and Fermi/GBM"
Publ. Astron. Soc. Japan 63S, 1035 (2011) - Yamamoto, T., Sugizaki, M., Mihara, T., Nakajima, M., Yamaoka, K., Matsuoka, M, Morii, M., & Makishima, K.:
"Discovery of a Cyclotron Resonance Feature in the X-ray Spectrum of GX 304-1 with RXTE and Suzaku during Outbursts Detected by MAXI in 2010"
Publ. Astron. Soc. Japan 63S, 751 (2011) - Sugizaki, M., Mihara, T., Serino, M., Yamamoto, T., Matsuoka, M., Kohama, M., Tomida, H., Ueno, S., et al.:
"In-Orbit Performance of MAXI Gas Slit Camera (GSC) on ISS"
Publ. Astron. Soc. Japan 63S, 635 (2011) - Mihara, T., Nakajima, M., Sugizaki, M., Serino, M., Matsuoka, M., Kohama, M., Kawasaki, K., et al.:
"Gas Slit Camera (GSC) onboard MAXI on ISS"
Publ. Astron. Soc. Japan 63S, 623 (2011) - Tsunemi, H., Tomida, H., Katayama, H., Kimura, M., Daikyuji, A., Miyaguchi,K., Maeda, K., et al.:
"In-Orbit Performance of the MAXI/SSC onboard the ISS"
Publ. Astron. Soc. Japan 62, 1371 (2010) - Isobe, N., Sugimori, K., Kawai, N., Ueda, Y., Negoro, H., Sugizaki, M., Matsuoka, M., et al.:
"Bright X-Ray Flares from the BL Lac Object Markarian 421, Detected with MAXI in 2010 January and February"
Publ. Astron. Soc. Japan 62, L55 (2010) - Nakahira, S., Yamaoka, K., Sugizaki, M., et al.:
"MAXI GSC Observations of a Spectral State Transition in the Black Hole Candidate XTE J1752-223"
Publ. Astron. Soc. Japan 62, L27 (2010) - Matsuoka, M., et al.:
"The MAXI Mission on the ISS: Science and Instruments for Monitoring All-Sky X-Ray Images."
Publ. Astron. Soc. Japan 61, 999 (2009)
Principal Investigator
- Kazuo MAKISHIMA
- Team Leader
Staff Scientist
- Tatehiro MIHARA
- Senior Research Scientist
- Mutsumi SUGIZAKI
- ASI Research Scientist
- Motoko SERINO
- ASI Research Scientist
Postdoctoral Fellow
- Kumiko MORIHANA
- Postdoctoral Researcher
Student Trainee
- Takayuki YAMAMOTO
- Junior Research Associate