Perspectives from CTA in relativistic astrophysics

The Cherenkov telescope array (CTA) is a next-generation observatory for very high energy (VHE) gamma-ray astronomy. With one array of imaging atmospheric Cherenkov telescopes each in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, CTA will provide full-sky coverage, enhance flux sensitivity by one order of magnitude compared to current instruments, cover gamma-ray energies from 20 GeV to 300 GeV, and provide a wide field of view with angular resolution of a few arc-minutes.

Science themes to be addressed by the CTA observatory include (i) understanding the origin of relativistic cosmic particles, and the role these play in the evolution of star forming systems and galaxies, (ii) probing extreme environments such as neutron stars and black holes, but also the cosmic voids, and (iii) exploring frontiers in physics such as the nature of dark matter. With its superior performance, the prospects for CTA combine guaranteed science — the in-depth understanding of known objects and mechanisms — with anticipated detection of new classes of gamma-ray emitters and new phenomena, and a very significant potential for fundamentally new discoveries.