Spacelab 2 X-ray telescope, 1985

This is the X-ray telescope designed and built by a team from the University of Birmingham. Scientists, engineers and technicians pooled experience over many years to make the project a success.

It flew aboard the Spacelab 2 Shuttle mission in 1985 and peered into the heart of our galaxy – the Milky Way – to map the distribution of high-energy X-ray sources there. A source detected near to the centre is thought to be a micro-quasar – a small black hole sucking in matter and emitting huge quantities of high-energy X-ray radiation.

The telescope stands almost 3.5 metres tall – the biggest size it could be and still fit inside the Shuttle’s cargo bay. The instrument is made of two telescopes, one coarse and one fine. Across the top you can see the coarse and fine masks. They allowed a selection of X-rays through to detectors at the base of the instrument.