Sigma Orionis Cluster X-Ray Point Sources from XMM-Newton

NASA HEASARC provides a catalog of 175 X-ray sources detected by the XMM-Newton satellite in the young Sigma Orionis star cluster. The observation, conducted in March 2002, identified 88 sources associated with cluster members, including very low-mass stars, and detected significant variability in about 40% of late-type members. This table, created in May 2007, contains 156 entries combining confirmed associations and candidate sources.

Use Cases

• Study X-ray luminosity and variability in young stellar objects based on the detection of 175 sources and noted variability in ~40% of late-type members.
• Investigate the relationship between X-ray emission and stellar type based on the analysis of late-type stars and T Tauri stars mentioned in the description.
• Identify candidate cluster members based on the 11 new possible candidates detected from the 2MASS catalog.
• Analyze stellar coronal properties based on the spectral analysis showing typical quiescent temperatures and subsolar abundances.

Strengths

• Contains 175 X-ray sources with positional accuracy <= 5 arcseconds.
• Includes analysis of spectral properties, variability, and flaring for a significant portion of the sources.
• Observation details are specific, including a total duration of 43 ks and the use of EPIC MOS and PN cameras.

Limitations

• Column-level documentation is absent; field semantics must be inferred after download.
• Row count is unknown, which may limit suitability assessment.
• Data is from a single observation in 2002; temporal coverage is limited.

Provenance

Source

National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) HEASARC, based on CDS catalog J/A+A/446/501.

Collection Method

Analysis of XMM-Newton EPIC field observation data.

Time Range

Observation conducted on March 23-24, 2002.

Freshness

Last updated 2026-03-13 19:42:14.241481; freshness should be verified.

Geography

Centered on the hot star sigma Ori AB in the Sigma Orionis cluster.