Aditya L1: One step closer to Sun

Bengaluru: In order to raise Aditya L1's orbit, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) performed the first Earth-bound firing successfully at 11.45 am on Sunday. This happened a day after PSLV-C57.1 rocket carrying Aditya L1 was successfully launched from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota.

Taking to X, ISRO said, "The satellite is healthy and operating nominally. The first Earth-bound manoeuvre (EBN#1) is performed successfully from ISTRAC, Bengaluru. The new orbit attained is 245km x 22459 km. The next manoeuvre (EBN#2) is scheduled for September 5, 2023, around 03:00 hrs, IST." The third stage of the separation of PSLV carrying the Aditya-L1 orbiter has been completed, ISRO said. India's first solar observatory has begun its journey to the destination of Sun-Earth L1 point, the agency said. The satellite will travel approx. 1.5 million kilometres journey to study the Sun. This mission is a collaboration of Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) with six other institutes of the country.

The Aditya-L1 mission is the first space-based observatory-class Indian solar mission to study the Sun. It will be placed in a halo orbit around the Lagrangian point (L1) of the Sun-Earth system. The mission aims to observe the photosphere, chromosphere and the outermost layers of the Sun (the corona) using electromagnetic and particle and magnetic field detectors.

Aditya L1 is expected to take around four months to reach its destination in the space- L1. After reaching the point, India will be able to study the Sun for over a period of five years.