A Chandra high-resolution X-ray image of Centaurus A

We present first results from a Chandra X-Ray Observatory observation of th e radio galaxy Centaurus A with the High-Resolution Camera. All previously reported major sources of X-ray emission including the bright nucleus, the jet, individual point sources, and diffuse emission are resolved or detecte d. The spatial resolution of this observation is better than 1 " in the cen ter of the field of view and allows us to resolve X-ray features of this ga laxy not previously seen. In particular, we resolve individual knots of emi ssion in the inner jet and diffuse emission between the knots. All of the k nots are diffuse at the 1 " level, and several exhibit complex spatial stru cture. We find the nucleus to be extended by a few tenths of an arcsecond. Our image also suggests the presence of an X-ray counterjet. Weak X-ray emi ssion from the southwest radio lobe is also seen, and we detect 63 pointlik e galactic sources (probably X-ray binaries and supernova remnants) above a luminosity limit of similar to 1.7 x 10(37) ergs s(-1).