Aditya L1 mission: While speaking at an event in Gujarat today (December 22), the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) Chairman S Somanath spoke about the Aditya L1 mission.
He said, "Aditya L1 will enter L1 point on January 6 (Wednesday). That is what is expected and the exact time will be announced at the appropriate time," said ISRO Chairman S Somanath on Friday at the Vibrant Gujarat Global Summit 2024 in Gandhinagar.
S Somanath on Aditya L1 mission:
Earlier, ISRO Chairman S Somanath said that the Aditya L1 spacecraft, India's first space-based mission to study the Sun, is nearing its final phase, and manoeuvers to enter the L1 point are expected to be completed by January 7, 2024.
"Aditya is on the way. I think it has reached almost its final phase," the ISRO chief told media on the sidelines of an event organised at VSSC to commemorate the 60th year of the First Sounding Rocket Launch.
He said that the last preparations for the spacecraft's entry into the L1 point are currently underway incrementally. "Possibly by January 7th, the final maneuvers will be done for entering into the L1 point," Somanath added.
Aditya L1 was successfully launched on September 2 from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) in Sriharikota. The spacecraft, after travelling about 1.5 million km from Earth over 125 days, is expected to be placed in a Halo orbit around the Lagrangian point L1, considered closest to the Sun.
Among other tasks, it will capture and transmit pictures of the Sun for scientific experiments.
ALSO READ: ISRO's video shows how Aditya-L1 SUIT captured Sun in space | WATCH
ALSO READ: ISRO's Aditya-L1 captures full-disk images of Sun | See first pictures
