The Aditya L1 mission marks India's maiden solar study expedition conducted from space. This observatory, as revealed by ISRO, will be stationed in a halo orbit encircling Lagrange point 1 (L1), positioned about 1.5 million km away from Earth, within the Sun-Earth system.
ISRO's plan entails launching the mission through a PSLV rocket from the Sathish Dhawan Space Centre SHAR (SDSC SHAR) based in Sriharikota. Commencing in a low Earth orbit, the spacecraft will subsequently undergo an elliptical orbit transformation, propelling it towards the L1 point by utilizing its onboard propulsion system.
According to ISRO, as the spacecraft progresses towards L1, it will depart from Earth's Sphere of Influence (SOI), marking the commencement of the cruise phase. Subsequently, the spacecraft will be positioned within an extensive halo orbit encircling the L1 point.
The complete duration for the journey from launch to the L1 point is projected to be approximately four months for Aditya-L1.
ISRO further highlights that a satellite positioned around L1 will enjoy a notable benefit of uninterrupted access to the Sun's perspective, devoid of any interference from occultation or eclipses.
Additionally, the mission offers the benefit of real-time observation of solar events and their influence on space weather.
Equipped with seven payloads, the spacecraft aims to study the photosphere, chromosphere, and the uppermost solar layers (corona). This will be achieved through the utilization of electromagnetic, particle, and magnetic field sensors.
From its strategic L1 vantage point, the mission will observe the sun directly using four payloads, while an additional three payloads will concentrate on analyzing particles and fields at the L1 location. ISRO's website affirms that this arrangement will yield significant scientific insights into the way solar dynamics spread within the interplanetary medium.
The payloads on Aditya L1 are anticipated to yield vital data concerning topics such as coronal heating, coronal mass ejections, pre-flare and flare events along with their attributes, the behavior of space weather, particle and field propagation, and various other pertinent subjects.
The primary goals of the mission include investigating the dynamics of the solar upper atmosphere, specifically the chromosphere and corona. Additionally, the mission aims to explore topics such as chromospheric and coronal heating, the behavior of partially ionized plasma, the triggers for coronal mass ejections and solar flares. By observing the particle and plasma conditions, the mission will gather valuable data for analyzing solar particle dynamics. Another key focus is unraveling the physics behind the solar corona and the mechanisms responsible for its heating.
It will dive deeper into the temperature, velocity and density of coronal and coronal loops plasma. It will also research the development, dynamics and origin of CMEs.
The mission will identify the chronology of processes that take place in Sun's multiple layers - chromosphere, base and extended corona - which often eventually leads to solar eruptive events.
In the solar corona, the mission aims to find out the magnetic field topology and measurements.
It will also identify what drives space weather, along with the origin, composition and dynamics of the solar wind.
As per ISRO, "The instruments of Aditya-L1 are tuned to observe the solar atmosphere mainly the chromosphere and corona. In-situ instruments will observe the local environment at L1. There are a total of seven payloads on-board with four of them carrying out remote sensing of the Sun and three of them carrying in-situ observation."
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