Scientists hope information gathered by Nustar will shed light on how black holes are distributed and help predict the fates of galaxies.
"I thought the program was dead," said principal investigator Fiona Harrison of the California Institute of Technology. "It's a great opportunity to find black holes that are hidden to optical telescopes."
Nustar, made up of an array of three X-ray telescopes, is expected to detect black holes with 500 times more sensitivity than current space-based telescopes.
Nustar is part of NASA's Explorer program, which funds small to mid-sized projects. Nustar is expected to cost $105 million, Harrison said.
The mission will be managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena.
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On the Net:
Nustar mission: http://www.nustar.caltech.edu
