Happy 10th birthday, XMM-Newton

From the XMM-Newton mailing list:

10 Years in Orbit: HAPPY BIRTHDAY, XMM-Newton!

Today, XMM-Newton is celebrating its 10th anniversary. On the 10th of
December 1999 at 14:32 GMT the European Space Agency's XMM-Newton
observatory was launched and started exploring the wonders of the
X-ray universe.

During its first decade of operations, XMM-Newton has supplied new
data to every aspect of astronomy, improving our understanding from
nearby comets to the most distant quasars and gamma-ray bursts.

A dedicated web site celebrating this event is available at:

http://xmm.esac.esa.int/external/xmm_news/items/10th_Anniversary/

We wish all the best to XMM-Newton for the years to come.

We take this opportunity to thank you all for your continued support
and interest in the mission.

The ESA website for XMM-Newton produced the highlights poster shown above (higher resolution versions available here). Of course M82, everyone's favorite starburst galaxy with a galactic wind, features prominently.