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Happy 2nd Birthday, Einstein Probe!
Dear colleagues,
January 9, 2026, marks the two-year anniversary of the launch of the Einstein Probe, a pioneering mission designed to explore the dynamic and violent universe in X-ray light. Over the past 24 months, this "lobster-eye" satellite has vigilantly scanned the sky, capturing brilliant flashes from the core-collapse of massive stars, the immense gravity of black holes tearing stars apart, mysterious neutron star mergers, and stellar flares millions of times brighter than those from our Sun. Its discoveries include new black holes, neutron stars, and white dwarfs lurking within our Galaxy and neighboring systems. To date, Einstein Probe has detected more than 180 transient events, including approximately 140 fast X-ray transients. It has observed more than 20000 targets ranging from comets and planets within our Solar System to stars, nebulae, galaxies, clusters, and even explosive events from the early universe. Many of these findings have peeled back layers of cosmic mystery, transforming our understanding of the high-energy sky. At the time of writing, over 200 papers based on Einstein Probe data or findings have been published or submitted worldwide.
As we celebrate this milestone, we look forward to the mission’s continued watch, expecting the unexpected as it illuminates the darkest, most energetic phenomena in our universe.
We also extend our congratulations and deepest gratitude to every member of the Einstein Probe team from all our partners, to other ground- and space-based telescope teams supporting follow-up and identification of EP transients, and collaborators worldwide, whose tremendous efforts and cooperation made these achievements possible. Thanks also go to the members of the Science Management Committee and the chairs and co-chairs of each Science Topical Panel. We particularly wish to recognize and thank our colleagues and students—including the Transient Advocates, Duty Scientists, and Instrument Experts from the EP Science Center, Mission Center, and various institutions—for their exceptional dedication. Their hard work ensures the smooth operations of the mission, precise instrument calibration, and the efficient processing of invaluable data.
Wishing everyone a wonderful 2026 and another year of fruitful discovery with EP ahead!
Weimin Yuan
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Latest News
CAS and ESA Jointly Release First Batch of Einstein Probe Science Data
After the first 1.5 years of operations, the Einstein Probe mission, led by the Chinese Academy of Sciences in collaboration with the European Space Agency (ESA), the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics, Germany, and the Centre National d'Études Spatiales (CNES), France, has publicly released the first batch of science data, for which the proprietary period has expired. read more
Xinhua: Chinese Satellite Reveals Mysterious Cosmic Fireworks
In the course of almost two years after China's astronomical satellite named Einstein Probe (EP) was launched, it has managed to capture many extraordinary transient events in the universe that flicker like fireworks, thereby helping expand human understanding of extreme physical phenomena in the cosmos. read more
EP-FXT Data Analysis Software (FXTDAS) Version 1.20 Released
The EP-FXT team announced the release of FXTDAS version 1.20, the latest update to the data analysis software for the Einstein Probe Follow-up X-ray Telescope (EP-FXT) in June 2025. Download link: http://epfxt.ihep.ac.cn/analysis.
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Einstein Probe Operation Updates
In 2025, EP performed 11,124 observations, accumulating a total exposure of approximately 17.2 Ms. The Monitoring Survey dominated EP operations, accounting for 12.1 Ms (70.2%) across 9,625 observations. Target-of-Opportunity (ToO) observations contributed 4.1 Ms (23.9%) over 1,189 observations, while Autonomous Follow-up observations comprised 1.0 Ms (5.9%) with 310 observations.
The Monitoring Survey includes Cycle-1 and Cycle-2 FXT Survey Target Observations (FSTOs), gap-filling sources, and WXT/FXT calibrations, while the ToO category includes follow-ups to EP transients, Cycle-1/2 anticipated ToO targets, and regular ToO observations. These results demonstrate EP’s stable long-term monitoring capability alongside efficient transient-response operations.
Since its launch, EP has carried out 16,776 observations in total, including 2,211 ToO observations. EP has detected around 180 X-ray transients—including approximately 140 fast transients with burst durations spanning from seconds to hours. These detections facilitate studies across various source classes, such as extra-galactic fast X-ray transients including gamma-ray bursts, tidal disruption events, and new X-ray binary systems.
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Recent Publications
Exploring the Connection between Compact Object Mergers and Fast X-ray Transients. The cases of LXT 240402A and EP250207b
Becerra et al., A&A paper link
EP250207b is not a Collapsar Fast X-ray Transient. Is it due to a Binary Copact Object Merger?
Jonker et al., MNRAS paper link
Einstein Probe Discovery of EP J182730.0-095633: A New Black Hole X-Ray Binary Candidate in Faint Outburst?
Cheng et al., ApJL paper link
EP241021a: A Months-duration X-Ray Transient with Luminous Optical and Radio Emission
Shu et al., ApJL paper link
Discovery of 146.8 s Pulsations from EP J005146.9-730930, a New Transient Be/X-ray Binary in the SMC
Harbel et al., MNRAS paper link |
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WXT FoV for the next 24 hrs online
The WXT FoV for the next 24 hours is also available on the EP website for the coordination of simultaneous observations with other facilities. (click here)
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