India | Sriharikota | September 1, 2023: – The countdown for the launch of India’s pioneering solar observatory mission, Aditya-L1, has officially commenced at the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota. Scheduled for liftoff at 11:50 a.m. IST on September 2, 2023, this mission marks a significant milestone in India’s space exploration endeavors.
The Aditya-L1 spacecraft is set to embark on its journey atop the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), marking the 59th flight of the PSLV and the 25th mission utilizing the PSLV-XL configuration. This mission will launch the Aditya-L1 spacecraft into a highly eccentric Earth-bound orbit.
One of the distinguishing features of this mission is the spacecraft’s intended placement in a halo orbit around Lagrange Point 1 (L1) in the Sun-Earth system, approximately 1.5 million kilometers from Earth. This unique vantage point offers uninterrupted views of the Sun, without the interference of eclipses or occultations.
Aditya-L1 carries seven payloads designed to observe various aspects of the Sun, including the photosphere, chromosphere, and the outermost layers of the Sun, known as the corona. These observations will be made possible through electromagnetic and particle and magnetic field detectors. Four of these payloads will directly observe the Sun, while the remaining three will conduct in-situ studies of particles and fields at Lagrange Point L1, providing valuable insights into solar dynamics in the interplanetary medium.
These payloads are expected to offer critical data to unravel the mysteries of coronal heating, coronal mass ejections, pre-flare and flare activities, space weather dynamics, and the propagation of particles and fields.
The seven payloads aboard Aditya-L1 include the Visible Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC), Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT), Solar Low Energy X-ray Spectrometer (SoLEXS), High Energy L1 Orbiting X-ray Spectrometer (HEL1OS), Aditya Solar Wind Particle Experiment (ASPEX), Plasma Analyser Package for Aditya (PAPA), and Advanced Tri-axial High-Resolution Digital Magnetometers.
This launch comes on the heels of India’s historic achievement of becoming the fourth country to successfully land on the Moon and the first to land near the lunar south pole. Aditya-L1’s mission to study the Sun promises to expand our understanding of the Sun’s behavior and its impact on space weather, contributing to advancements in space science and technology.
As the countdown progresses, space enthusiasts around the world eagerly anticipate the launch of Aditya-L1 and the wealth of knowledge it promises to bring about our nearest star, the Sun. You can catch the live broadcast of the launch on the ISRO website, Facebook, YouTube, and DD National TV. Stay tuned for this groundbreaking event in India’s space exploration journey.
