Historic Solar Observatory Mission: India’s Aditya-L1, the country’s first solar space observatory, is gearing up for launch on September 2, 2023, in PSLV’s 59th flight.
Critical Mission Details: The PSLV, configured as XL, will place Aditya-L1 in a highly eccentric Earth-bound orbit. The spacecraft will use its powerful liquid apogee motors (LAM) for orbital maneuvers to reach Lagrange Point-1 (L1), located about 1.5 million km away from Earth, which is just 1/100th of the distance between Earth and the Sun.
Aditya-L1’s Purpose: Aditya-L1 is dedicated to the comprehensive study of the Sun and boasts seven distinct payloads developed indigenously.
Understanding L1: L1 refers to Lagrange Point 1, where the gravitational forces of two celestial bodies, like the Sun and Earth, are in equilibrium, allowing an object to remain relatively stable with respect to both.
Challenges Ahead: After launch, Aditya-L1 will stay in Earth-bound orbits for 16 days, undergoing five maneuvers to gain necessary velocity. Subsequently, it will begin its 110-day journey to the L1 Lagrange point.
Strategic Orbit: Aditya-L1 will orbit around L1 in a plane perpendicular to the Earth-Sun line, maintaining a constant view of the Sun. This location also allows it to access solar radiation and magnetic storms before Earth’s influence.
Operational Efficiency: The L1 point’s gravitational stability minimizes the need for frequent orbital maintenance, optimizing the satellite’s efficiency.
Scientific Objectives: The mission aims to study various aspects of the Sun, including coronal heating, solar wind acceleration, coronal mass ejections (CMEs), solar atmosphere dynamics, and temperature anisotropy.
Scientific Instruments: Aditya-L1 carries seven scientific instruments, including VELC and SUIT for imaging and spectroscopy, SoLEXS for soft X-ray spectrometry, HEL1OS for hard X-ray spectrometry, ASPEX for solar wind analysis, PAPA for particle analysis, and magnetometers for magnetic field studies.
A New Frontier: Following the success of Chandrayaan-3, India’s lunar mission, Aditya-L1 represents a significant leap into the study of solar activities and space weather, contributing valuable insights to scientific research.
SS Latest News