FOXSI-4: the direct-focusing SXR and HXR sounding rocket instrument
The Focusing Optics X-ray Solar Imager (FOXSI) sounding rocket has observed quiet Sun, active region emission, and microflares in hard X-rays (HXRs) during three previous flights utilising direct-focusing optics. FOXSI is the first solar-optimised direct-focusing HXR instrument capable of observing a wide range of solar phenomena at different emission magnitudes. FOXSI-4, the fourth FOXSI sounding rocket mission, flown on 2024 April 17 from Poker Flat in Alaska, took part in NASA's first solar flare campaign. An M1 GOES class flare was observed and resulted in the first focused imaging HXR spectroscopic observation of a medium-to-large sized solar flare. FOXSI-4 incorporated new, upgraded hardware including improved CMOS soft X-ray detectors, high-resolution Wolter-I optics from Nagoya University and MSFC, CdTe HXR strip detectors, and a Timepix detector. Two microfabricated pixelated attenuators from GSFC were also included. FOXSI-4 obtains greater spatial and energy resolution than ever before with observations providing an unprecedented view into energy deposition throughout the solar atmosphere and to the possible presence of particle acceleration in the observed conditions.
Authors
- Anthony R. Guillory
- Noriyuki Narukage (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6330-3944)
- Hunter Kanniainen
- Jagan Ranganathan
- Danielle N. Gurgew
- Grant Davis
- Eliad Peretz
- Patrick Champey (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7139-6191)
- Shunsaku Nagasawa (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6574-6784)
- N. H. Godbole (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4147-0602)
- Anton S. Tremsin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2443-7576)
- W. H. Baumgartner (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5106-0463)
- Taro Sakao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2991-4159)
- Kristopher Cooper (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8589-3378)
- Stephen D. Bongiorno (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0901-2097)
- Tadayuki Takahashi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6305-3909)
- Sophie Musset (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0945-8996)
- P. S. Athiray (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4454-147X)
- Ikuyuki Mitsuishi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9901-233X)
- Srikanth Panini Singam (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6682-4841)
- Säm Krucker (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2002-9180)
- Jeff McCracken
- Lindsay Glesener (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7092-2703)
- J. J. Kolodziejczak
- Daniel Ryan (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-3753-1103)
- Juan Carlos Martínez Oliveros (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2587-1342)
- Savannah Perez-Piel (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8410-2079)
- Orlando Romeo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4559-2199)
- Juan Camilo Buitrago‐Casas (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8203-4794)
- Tamar Ervin (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8475-8606)
- Yusuke Yoshida (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0774-0509)
- Athanasios Pantazides
- Chet O. Speegle
- David Banks (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4575-504X)
- Nicholas E. Thomas (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0411-4606)
- Juliana Vievering (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7407-6740)
- Steven Christe (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6127-795X)
- Kazuki Ampuku (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0005-3295-7215)
- Yixian Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2619-1485)
- Takahiro Minami (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-5690-9956)
- Shin Watanabe (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0441-7404)
- Ryuto Fujii (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0004-5957-3505)
- Riko Shimizu
- Sasha Courtade
- Yoshiaki Sato
- Koki Sakuta
- Jack Redepenning
Institutions
- Marshall Space Flight Center (US)
- University of Minnesota (US)
- Goddard Space Flight Center (US)
- Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe (JP)
- American University (US)
- FHNW University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland (CH)
- Twin Cities Orthopedics (US)
- University College London (GB)
- University of California, Berkeley (US)
Publication Details
- Published
- 2025-08-08
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1117/12.3064685
- Primary Topic
- Calibration and Measurement Techniques
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00