India’s solar observatory named Aditya L1 has started to collect the scientific data and is set to break free from Earth’s gravity tonight.
Aditya L1, which is India’s solar mission is currently in an earth bound orbit and is scheduled to break free from Earth’s gravitational field on Tuesday at 2am. After that it will be on its four month long journey towards its destination commonly known as L1, which is among the 5 Lagrange points between the Sun and the Earth.
Aditya L1 is equipped with seven different kinds of instruments aimed at studying various phenomena associated with Sun. One of these instruments, known a Supra Thermal & Energetic Particle Spectrometer (STEPS) has already started the data collection after it was activated on September 10.
It is pertinent to mention here that STEPS ha six sensors aimed at measuring supra thermal ions and their behaviors. This will enable scientists to predict the behavior of these particles in the Earth’s magnetic field also.
Aditya L1 mission was launched after India successfully landed its Chandrayan on the South pole of the moon, thus becoming the first country to achieve the feat.
Will Aditya L1 land on the surface of Sun?
The answer is simply no. Aditya L1 is not going to land on the surface of the Sun. Instead, it will be planted in a Halo orbit around L1 point, that is one among the 5 lagrange points existing between the Sun and the Earth.
How far is L1 point from the earth?
The distance between the Sun and the Earth is approximately 15 crore km, and the distance of L1 point is 15 Lakh km from the earth. The distance between the earth and L1 point is just 1% of the distance between that of the Sun and the Earth.
What are the uses of Aditya L1 mission?
Aditya L1 mission will provide us deeper insights into our Solar system apart from helping us in space weather predictions. It will also enhance our space research, improve our satellite operations and high energy research.