Instrument Calibrations and Data Analysis Procedures for the NEAR X-Ray Spectrometer

The X-ray spectometer onboard the Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous spacecraft will measure X-rays from the surface of 433 Eros in the energy region 0.7-10 keV. Detection of characteristic K[Alpha] line emissions from Mg, Al, Si, Ca, Ti, and Fe will allow the determination of surface abundances of these geologically important elements. Spatial resolution as fine as 3 km will be possible for those elements where counting statistics are not a limiting factor. These measurements will make it possible to relate Eros to known classes of meteorites and reveal geological processes that occurred on Eros. The calibration measurements and analysis procedures presented here are necessary for the reduction and analysis of the X-ray data to be collected during one year of orbital operations at Eros. [C] 2000 Academic Press Key Words: asteroids; instrumentation; X-rays; NEAR.