50 Years of X-ray Astronomy

Institute of Astronomy Public Observing Evening, Cambridge (14/11/2012)

2012 saw the 50th anniversary of Giaconni's rocket flights and discoveries, beginning the field of X-ray astronomy. This talk gives an overview of the history of X-ray astronomy from 1962 and looking ahead to the future. I review past X-ray astronomy missions, explain some of the technology involved and explore the cutting edge science and discoveries made through astornomical X-ray observations.