Aditya-L1 update: India wishes surya namaskar by successfully placing Aditya-L1 in Halo orbit

Launched on Sep 2, the spacecraft completed four Earth manoeuvres and a Trans-Lagrangean Point 1 Insertion

ISRO’s inaugural solar mission, Aditya-L1, achieved a significant milestone as it completed its last manoeuvre to reach its designated orbit successfully and was injected into its final trajectory today.

Since its launch on September 2 of the previous year, the spacecraft has completed four manoeuvres in proximity to Earth and successfully executed a Trans-Lagrangean Point 1 Insertion (TL1I) manoeuvre. The primary objective of the mission is to study the Sun’s corona and comprehend its intense heat from a halo orbit around the initial Sun-Earth Lagrangian point (L1), situated approximately 1.5 million km away from Earth.

ISRO chairman, S Somnath, when asked about the Aditya-L1 mission, says that, “Today’s event was only placing the Aditya-L1 in the precise Halo orbit. So it was moving towards a high orbit, but we had to… So right now, in our calculation, it is at the right place. But we are going to monitor it for the next few hours to see whether it is at the right place. Then if it is slightly drifted, we may have to do a little bit of correction. We don’t expect that to happen…”

Images of the sun have been put up on ISRO’s official website. He also said that the mission includes particle measurements to analyse the substances emitted by the sun. This encompasses both low-energy and high-energy x-ray measurements. Furthermore, there is a magnetometer onboard that examines the magnetic field in space generated by these solar ejections. The solar wind, essentially the emission of particles, is a focal point of the study.

Prime minister Narendra Modi celebrates the victory by sharing a post on X saying, “India creates yet another landmark. India’s first solar observatory Aditya-L1 reaches its destination. It is a testament to the relentless dedication of our scientists in realising among the most complex and intricate space missions. I join the nation in applauding this extraordinary feat. We will continue to pursue new frontiers of science for the benefit of humanity.”