Aditya-L1: Aditya L1 is a mission to study the Sun. Along with this, ISRO has called it the first space-based observatory category Indian Solar Mission. The mission will carry a set of seven scientific payloads to systematically study the Sun.
The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) created history by successfully landing Chandrayaan-3 on the south pole of the Moon. Enthusiastic national space agency launched the Aditya-L1 mission today i.e. on Saturday. The purpose of this mission is to study the Sun.
First know what is Aditya-L1?
Aditya L1 is a mission to study the Sun. Along with this, ISRO has called it the first space-based observatory category Indian Solar Mission. The spacecraft is planned to be placed in a halo orbit around the Lagrangian point 1 (L1) of the Sun-Earth system which is about 1.5 million km from Earth. Actually, Lagrangian points are where all the gravitational forces acting between two objects neutralize each other. Because of this the L1 point can be used for take-off of the spacecraft.
What are the objectives of the mission?
India’s ambitious solar mission Aditya L-1 Structure of the solar corona (outermost part of the Sun’s atmosphere) and its heating process, its temperature, causes and origin of solar eruptions and solar storms, composition of corona and coronal loop plasma, velocity and density, measurements of the corona’s magnetic field, the origin, evolution and movement of coronal mass ejections (the most powerful explosions on the Sun that travel directly toward Earth), solar winds, and factors affecting space weather .
The Aditya-L1 mission will carry a set of seven scientific payloads to systematically study the Sun. The Visible Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC) will study the dynamics of the outermost part of the Sun’s atmosphere i.e. the solar corona and the most powerful explosions in the Sun i.e. coronal mass ejections.
The payload called the Solar Ultra-Violet Imaging Telescope (SUIT) will take near ultra-violet (UV) images of the solar photosphere and chromosphere. Along with this, SUIT will also measure changes in solar radiation near UV.
The Aditya Solar Wind Particle Experiment (ASPEX) and Plasma Analyzer Package for Aditya (PAPA) payloads will study the solar wind and powerful ions as well as their energy distribution.
The Solar Low Energy X-ray Spectrometer (SoLEXS) and the High Energy L1 Orbiting X-ray Spectrometer (HEL1OS) will study X-ray rays coming from the Sun over a wide X-ray energy range. Whereas, the magnetometer payload is designed to measure the magnetic field between the two planets at the L1 point.
The special feature of the seven science payloads of Aditya-L1 is that they have been developed indigenously by different laboratories in the country. All these payloads have been developed in collaboration with various centers of ISRO.
When and where was it launched?
Just hours after the major success of Chandrayaan-3 mission, ISRO chief S Somnath had announced the launch of Aditya L-1 mission. Today is the day when Aditya-L1 mission was launched by ISRO’s PSLV rocket from Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota. The mission was launched at 11.50 am. Initially the spacecraft will be placed in low Earth orbit. After this the orbit will be made more elliptical and later through propulsion the spacecraft will be launched towards the L1 point.
As the spacecraft approaches L1, it will exit Earth’s gravitational field (SOI). After exiting here, the cruise stage (the descent stage) will begin and the spacecraft will later be placed in a large halo orbit around L1. According to the agency, the entire journey from launch to L1 will take Aditya-L1 about four months.
Why is it important to study the Sun?
The Sun is the closest star and therefore can be studied in more detail than other stars. According to ISRO, by studying the Sun, we can learn a lot about the stars of our own galaxy as well as the stars of many other galaxies. The Sun is a very dynamic star that is much more spread out than what we see. There are many explosive events in it, along with it also releases a huge amount of energy in the solar system.
If such an explosive solar event is sent towards Earth, it can cause a variety of problems in the near-Earth space environment. Many spacecraft and communication systems have become victims of such problems. Therefore, early warning of such incidents is important for taking corrective measures well in advance.
Apart from these, if an astronaut comes directly in contact with such explosive events then he can be at risk. Many thermal and magnetic events take place on the Sun which are of violent nature. Thus the Sun also provides a good natural laboratory for understanding phenomena that cannot be directly studied in the laboratory.