ISRO's Aditya L1 Solar Mission Successfully Completes Second Earth Orbit Maneuver

Tags: Science and Technology

The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) announced the successful completion of the second Earth orbit-raising maneuver for the Aditya L1 solar mission.

An Overview of the News

• ISRO's Telemetry, Tracking, and Command Network (ISTRAC) carried out the operation.

• As a result of this maneuver, the Aditya L1 spacecraft moved from its previous orbit, which was 282 by 40,225 km around the Earth, to a new orbit of 245 by 22,459 km around the Earth.

• The Aditya L1 mission will undergo a total of four Earth-orbital maneuvers before being placed in a transfer orbit towards its destination, the Lagrange point L1. The process is expected to take 125 days.

• The third Earth-bound maneuver is scheduled for 2:30 a.m. on September 10.

• The primary objective of the Aditya L1 mission is to provide valuable information about the solar corona and to make in-situ observations of the solar wind at the L1 point, which is located approximately 1.5 million kilometers from Earth.

• The mission was successfully launched on 2 September using the Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle C57.

Objectives and scope of Aditya L1 mission

• The primary objective of the Aditya L1 mission is to conduct a comprehensive study of the solar wind and the Sun's atmosphere.

• The satellite carries seven different payloads to observe different layers of the Sun, including the photosphere, chromosphere, and outermost corona.

• The mission aims to enhance our understanding of several solar phenomena, such as coronal heating, coronal mass ejection (CME), pre-flare and flare activities, as well as the dynamics of solar weather.

• Additionally, the mission will contribute to the investigation of particle and field propagation within the interplanetary medium.

Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO):

• It was established on 15 August 1969.

• It is the national space agency of India. It launched its space rocket from the Satish Dhawan Space Center in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.

• Headquarters - Bengaluru

• Chairman - S Somnath