Future Japanese X-ray TES Calorimeter Satellite: DIOS (Diffuse Intergalactic Oxygen Surveyor)

We present the latest update and progress on the future Japanese X-ray satellite mission Diffuse Intergalactic Oxygen Surveyor (DIOS). DIOS is proposed to JAXA as a small satellite mission, and would be launched with an Epsilon rocket. DIOS would carry on the legacy of ASTRO-H, which carries semiconductor-based microcalorimeters and is scheduled to be launched in 2016, in high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy. A 400-pixel array of transition-edge sensors (TESs) would be employed, so DIOS would also provide valuable lessons for the next ESA X-ray mission ATHENA on TES operation and cryogen-free cooling in space. We have been sophisticating the entire design of the satellite to meet the requirement for the Epsilon payload for the next call. The primary goal of the mission is to search for warm-hot intergalactic medium with high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy by detecting redshifted emission lines from OVII and OVIII ions. The results would have significant impacts on our understanding of the nature of “dark baryons,” their total amount and spatial distribution, as well as their evolution over cosmological timescales.