Chasing Black Holes: An Insider's View of a Space Astronomy Mission

Space Missions In The Movies Can Seem Elegant And Straight-forward. Most Are Anything But! This Book Takes A Personal Journey Into The Labyrinth That A Space-mission Concept Must Travel Through Before A Mission Blasts Off Into Deep Space. Here Is The Story Of The Rossi X Ray Timing Explorer (rxte), An Earth-orbiting Nasa Observatory Meant To Study X-ray Emitting Celestial Objects. The Technical And Bureaucratic Hurdles Facing This Mission Are Described With Humor And Wry Personal Anecdotes. And The Pay-off? Sixteen Years Of Successful Observations Resulting In Critical New Insight Into Black Holes And Neutron Stars-- Provided By Publisher.