Space telescope, founded 1999
Chandra X-ray Observatory
NASA's Chandra X-ray Observatory has studied the hot universe since 1999. It survives FY2026 at a reduced $63 million, $11 million below full-mission cost.
- Location
- High Earth orbit (up to about 139,000 km altitude, 64-hour orbit)
- Focus
- Black holes, Galaxies, Stars, Dark matter, Telescopes and missions
In space
High Earth orbit (up to about 139,000 km altitude, 64-hour orbit)
The Chandra X-ray Observatory is NASA’s flagship X-ray telescope. It launched on July 23, 1999, aboard Space Shuttle Columbia and flies a high Earth orbit that reaches about 139,000 km and takes 64 hours. X-rays come from the hottest, most violent places in the universe: gas falling into black holes, exploded stars and the hot gas that fills galaxy clusters. Chandra is operated by the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory’s Chandra X-ray Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts, part of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian.
Flagship instruments
- Four nested mirrors on a 9.2-meter optical bench; Chandra can detect sources about 100 times fainter than earlier X-ray telescopes.
- HRC, the High Resolution Camera, restored to the reduced-cost mission in FY2026.
Recent results
X-ray astronomy began with the 1962 rocket flight that found the first cosmic X-ray source; its lead author, Riccardo Giacconi, later proposed Chandra. Our sources do not list individual 2026 Chandra discoveries. The 2026 story is about survival: Congress appropriated “not less than $63M” for FY2026, $11 million below the cost of the full mission, making Chandra a “Minimum-Cost Mission.” About $10.5 million for General Observer grants was restored to historic levels, while the Director’s Discretionary Time program lost its funding.
What to watch, 2026-2030
- From October 1, 2026: FY2027 appropriations decide Chandra’s operating level. The FY2027 President’s budget request does not mention Chandra, according to the Chandra team (May 2026), and it proposes a 47% cut to NASA’s Science Mission Directorate.
Why scientists are converging here
The X-ray community is rallying around Chandra because its capabilities are hard to replace on short notice. Other X-ray missions are moving forward: Japan’s XRISM was extended through March 2030, and the eROSITA survey led by MPE released a catalog of nearly 2 million X-ray sources in July 2026. Chandra’s future, by contrast, is decided one budget year at a time.
