The Neutron star Interior Composition ExploreR (NICER) is a NASA Astrophysics Explorer Mission of Opportunity dedicated to the study of the extraordinary gravitational, electromagnetic, and nuclear-physics environments embodied by neutron stars. NICER moved into its development phase in spring of 2014 and successfully completed its Critical Design Review in Fall of 2014.
<p>NICER will allow astrophysicists to:
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<ul><li>Explore the exotic states of matter inside neutron stars, where density and pressure are higher than in atomic nuclei, comparing the predictions of theoretical models with observational constraints of unprecedented sensitivity.</li>
<li>Enable rotation-resolved spectroscopy of the thermal and non-thermal emissions of neutron stars in the 0.2-12 keV X-ray energy band, probing neutron stars interior structure, the origins of dynamic phenomena, and particle acceleration mechanisms.</li></ul>
NASA
<a rel="nofollow" class="external free" href="http://science.nasa.gov/missions/nicer/">http://science.nasa.gov/missions/nicer/</a>