During its mission to the moon, India will send another probe to study the sun

In the same week as the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) reported this Presence of sulfur on the lunar surfacerecognized by the rover his mission Chandrayaan-3 Near the South Pole will be the launch of another space project of the Asian giant: Aditya-L1the first Indian satellite to study the Sun.

The start is scheduled for this Saturday at 11:50 a.m. local time informs ISRO on his social network X (old Twitter). Then the trajectory of the ship around our planet is adjusted and later a transfer manoeuvre to his new home: that first Lagrangian point (L1) of the Sun-Earth system, where it will arrive in about 100 days.

This point is an ideal location for Aditya-L1 and other solar explorers as it allows an unobstructed view of the Sun that is never obscured by Earth. However, it is an unstable environment in which spacecraft like this must function regular maneuvers (about once a month) to stay in correct orbit.

On L1, the Aditya-L1 satellite will connect to spacecraft such as ESA and NASA’s Solar Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), which have been there since 1996.

Once positioned at their destination, the seven instruments of the Indian satellite are used to investigate open questions about our dynamic and turbulent star. Four of them will observe the Sun directly, while the other three will take measurements on site to explore the nature of space weather that the Sun produces in interplanetary space.

ESA support for Aditya-L1

The European Space Agency (ESA) supports the Aditya-L1 mission in two ways: Last year, it already supported ISRO with the Validation of a new and important software of flight dynamics, and will now deliver communication services.

“We are now providing support for the Aditya L1 mission with our three 35-meter deep-space antennas Spain (brains), Argentina (Malargue) And Australia (New Norcia)as well as support from our Kourou station in French Guiana and Goonhilly ground station in the UK,” explains Ramesh ChellathuraiESA Director of Services and Liaison Officer between the European Space Agency and India.

For this Indian mission we support our three space antennas in Spain, Argentina and Australia.

Ramesh Chellathurai (ESA)

Meanwhile in space, Aditya-L1 will be the newest member of the fleet of solar explorers, which includes neighboring SOHO, ESA’s Solar Orbiter, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe and others in this joint NASA project. Humanity should unlock the mysteries of our star.

Aditya L1 mission infographic. / THE

Aditya-L1 in the clean room. /VDOS/URSC