XICHANG, China — A joint French-Chinese satellite launched on Saturday aims to explore the universe’s most powerful explosions, highlighting a significant collaboration between a Western nation and China.
The Space Variable Objects Monitor (SVOM), developed by engineers from both countries, is set to track gamma-ray bursts—phenomena whose light has traveled billions of light years to Earth.
The 930-kilogram satellite, equipped with four instruments (two French and two Chinese), launched at approximately 3:00 PM (0700 GMT) aboard a Chinese Long March 2-C rocket from Xichang in Sichuan province.
Gamma-ray bursts typically result from the explosion of massive stars—over 20 times the size of the sun—or the merger of compact stars. These bursts emit energy equivalent to that of a billion billion suns.
Observing gamma-ray bursts allows scientists to look back in time, as the light from these events takes an incredibly long time to reach Earth. “SVOM has the potential to unravel several mysteries in the field of gamma-ray bursts, including detecting the most distant GRBs in the universe,” said Ore Gottlieb, an astrophysicist at the Flatiron Institute’s Center for Astrophysics.
The farthest bursts observed so far were created just 630 million years after the Big Bang, during the universe’s infancy. Frederic Daigne, an astrophysicist at the Institut d’Astrophysique de Paris, noted, “We are interested in gamma-ray bursts for their own sake, as they are extreme cosmic explosions that help us better understand the death of certain stars.”
This valuable data could aid in understanding space’s composition, the dynamics of gas clouds, and the nature of other galaxies. The SVOM project is a result of cooperation between the French and Chinese space agencies, alongside other scientific and technical groups from both nations.
Despite US restrictions on space collaboration with China, European countries have occasionally participated in Chinese space missions. For example, the 2018 joint launch of CFOSAT and several European contributions to China’s Chang’e lunar program.
SVOM’s mission involves quickly gathering data from gamma-ray bursts, which are fleeting events. Upon detecting a burst, SVOM will alert a team on duty 24/7. Within five minutes, they must activate a network of ground-based telescopes to align precisely with the burst’s source for detailed observations.