No CrossRef data available.
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 April 2016
The Optical Monitors are small optical telescopes which will fly on board of the X-ray satellites SPECTRUM-X-GAMMA (JET-X experiment) and XMM. Their main scientific applications are the simultaneous observations (imaging) in the optical and UV band of the optical counterparts of X-ray sources, with limiting magnitudes of about mv=22 (JET-X) and 24 (XMM). The OMs are developed in order to perform also serendipitous observations with high photometric precision of bright stars falling in the field of view, which should allow the detection of stellar microvariability at a level better than 10−5. The main characteristics of the instruments are presented and the problems to be solved in order to reach the scientific goals are briefly discussed.