Aditya L1 Mission: Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) chief S Somanath said on Thursday said that Aditya L1, India's first solar mission, will reach the Lagrange point 1 (L1) of the Sun-Earth system on January 6 at 4 am. This will enable the spacecraft to view the sun without any eclipses.
The PSLV C57 rocket carrying the Aditya-L1 orbiter, lifted off successfully from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh on September 2 this year.
Here's what ISRO chief said on Aditya L1
"Aditya L1 is almost there now. Aditya L1 will reach Lagrange point on January 6 at 4 pm. We will have a very controlled burn of the engine of Aditya L1 so that it enters an orbit called the halo orbit," Somanath said at Techfest 2023, the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay's annual science and technology event.
Notably, lagrange point is a region where gravity between earth and sun will neutralise.
Somanath said that absolute neutralisation is not possible because there are other bodies like the Moon, Mars, Venus.
What will happend after insertion?
ISRO chief said further said that all six payloads of the Aditya L1 mission have been tested and are "working beautifully." He said that the payloads are providing valuable data from their observations.
"After the insertion the satellite will be destined to look at the Sun forever as long as its electronics inside are healthy and ready to transmit data. We hope to find out a lot of correlation between the solar corona and mass ejection and impact on space weather we are facing everyday," Somanath added.
Once the spacecraft successfully reaches Lagrange Point 1 (L1), ISRO has planned to spend the next five years in orbit around L1 and will be collecting vital data about the Sun.
The spacecraft's unique standpoint will enable the study of the Sun's outer layers, by providing crucial information about coronal heating, space weather dynamics, Coronal Mass Ejection and the generation of particles in the interplanetary medium.
Aditya L1 carries seven payloads which are designed to study the Sun's chromosphere, photosphere and corona. The information will contribute significantly to understanding the solar phenomena and their impact on various space-related activities.
ISRO chief on Chandrayaan-3
Regarding Chandrayaan-3, India's lunar mission, Somanath mentioned that after 14 days of successfully collecting data, the Pragyan rover is "sleeping very well" on the lunar surface. "It is sleeping forever in history. Unfortunately, we were hoping it would wake up, but it did not happen. When we tested the whole system in our laboratory, it was working," he said.
Somanath clarified that certain systems that functioned well in the laboratory may encounter challenges on the lunar surface, primarily due to factors such as radiation.
Chandrayaan-3 was India's third mission to the moon, and the second attempt to carry out a soft-landing on the lunar surface. ISRO managed to place the Vikram lander on the lunar surface and roll out the robotic rover, Pragyaan.
The triumph of Chandrayaan-3 marked a historic milestone on August 23 when the lander module successfully touched down on the moon's South Pole. India became the fourth nation, following the United States, China, and Russia, to achieve a successful lunar landing. The mission not only showcased technological prowess but also signalled redemption after the disappointment of the Chandrayaan-2 crash landing four years earlier.
(With PTI inputs)
Also Read: Aditya L1 Mission: All you need to know about ISRO's solar study probe
Also Read: Aditya L1 approaches critical stage: Countdown to Halo Orbit insertion initiates |Deets
