The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has announced on 28 August 2023 that it will launch its maiden space based solar mission , Aditya L-1, on 2nd September 2023. This is the second ambitious mission of ISRO after its successful Chandrayaan-3 mission.

Aditya which means Sun in Sanskrit and Hindi will be carried on board ISRO’s rocket PSLV XL(Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle- Extra Large) .The rocket will lift off at 11:50 am from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh.

Placement of Aditya L1

According to ISRO the Aditya probe will be placed in a halo orbit around the Lagrange point 1 (L1) of the Sun-Earth system, which is about 1.5 million km from the Earth.

A satellite placed in the halo orbit around the L1 point has the major advantage of continuously viewing the Sun without any occultation/eclipses. This will provide a greater advantage of observing the solar activities and its effect on space weather in real time.

What will Aditya L1 do ?

It aims to study solar winds, which can cause disturbance on earth and are commonly seen as "auroras".

Scientists expect that long term data from the mission could help better understand the sun's impact on earth's climate patterns.

Recently, researchers said the European Space Agency/NASA Solar Orbiter spacecraft had detected numerous relatively small jets of charged particles expelled intermittently from the corona - the sun's outer atmosphere - which could help shed light on the origins of solar wind.

Scientific payloads of Aditya

The spacecraft carries seven payloads to observe the photosphere, chromosphere and the outermost layers of the Sun (the corona) .All seven instruments have been developed in the country.

The Visible Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC) studies the solar corona and dynamics of Coronal Mass Ejections.
The Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT) payload images the Solar Photosphere and Chromosphere in near Ultraviolet (UV) and also measures the solar irradiance variations in near UV.
The Aditya Solar wind Particle EXperiment (ASPEX) and Plasma Analyser Package for Aditya (PAPA) payloads study the solar wind and energetic 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) studies the X-ray flares from the Sun over a wide X-ray energy range.
The Magnetometer payload is capable of measuring interplanetary magnetic fields at the L1 point.

Why is it called L1 ?

According to ISRO the Aditya probe will be placed in a halo orbit around the Lagrange point 1 (L1) of the Sun-Earth system, which is about 1.5 million km from the Earth.

What is Lagrange point 1 (L1)?

Lagrange Points are positions in space where the gravitational forces of a two body system like the Sun and the Earth produce enhanced regions of attraction and repulsion. These can be used by spacecraft to reduce fuel consumption needed to remain in position.

Lagrange points are named in honour of Italian-French mathematician Josephy-Louis Lagrange.

The L1 point of the Earth-Sun system affords an uninterrupted view of the sun.

Budget of the L1 Mission

In 2019, the government sanctioned the equivalent of about $46 million () around Rs 400 crore) for the Aditya-L1 mission. ISRO has not given an official update on costs.

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO)

It was set up on 15 August 1969

It is India's national space agency .

Headquarters : Bengaluru

Chairman: S.Somanath

First Chairman: Vikram Sarabhai