Joint HEP/Theory Seminar: The AGILE high-energy universe from black holes to lightning: how a "small" satellite can lead to "big" science

AGILE is a small mission of the Italian Space Agency launched on April
27, 2007, and primarily devoted to high-energy astrophysics. Although
its small dimensions and the overall very stringent constrains, in
more than eight years of operation AGILE was able to deliver
fundamental results on the physics of cosmic accelerators, including
supermassive black holes at the center of active galactic nuclei,
gamma-ray bursts, microquasars, pulsars and supernova remnants. This
large record of achievements culminated with the awarding of the Bruno
Rossi Prize by the American Astronomical Society for the discovery of
the variability of the Crab pulsar, and the establishment of supernova
remnants as the sites for galactic cosmic-ray acceleration. Moreover,
AGILE is observing our own Earth, being one of the few operative
satellites capable of detecting Terrestrial Gamma-ray Flashes,
powerful bursts of radiation associated with thunderstorms and
lightning activity. I will review the main scientific achievements of
the AGILE mission, from the extreme distances of the universe to our
restless atmosphere, with particular emphasis on the key factors that
make a small satellite become a highly successful mission.