Search for X-ray Emission in the Nearest Known Brown Dwarf

We propose to take advantage of the unprecedented sensitivity of XMM to detect coronal emission from the nearest brown dwarf. LP 94420 is at only 5 pc. It was discovered back in 1975 by Luyten and Kowal, but only recently was it recognized to be a brown dwarf thanks to the lithium test (Tinney 1998). It has an age of about 0.5 Gyr, and a mass of about 60 Jupiters. With XMM we will detect coronal emission even if the Xray luminosity is 1 million times fainter than the bolometric luminosity. LP 94420 can provide the best answer to the question of whether brown dwarfs have coronae. truncated!, Please see actual data for full text [truncated!, Please see actual data for full text]