Countdown for India's first mission to Sun begins

The mission is scheduled to be launched on September 2 at 11.50 am from the Sriharikota spaceport in Andhra Pradesh.

PTI, Chennai, 1 September 2023 : Shifting focus to its next space odyssey after successfully placing a lander on the moon's uncharted South Pole region, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is all set for the country's maiden solar mission - Aditya-L1. 

The launch of the sun mission is scheduled for Saturday at 11.50 am from the launch pad at Sriharikota, with the launch rehearsal and vehicle internal checks all being completed. Aditya-L1 is India's first solar space observatory and will be launched by the PSLV-C57. It will carry seven different payloads to have a detailed study of the sun, four of which will observe the light from the sun and the other three will measure in-situ parameters of the plasma and magnetic fields. 

The largest and technically most challenging payload on Aditya-L1 is the Visible Emission Line Coronagraph or VELC. 

VELC was integrated, tested, and calibrated at the Indian Institute of Astrophysics' CREST (Centre for Research and Education in Science Technology) campus in Hosakote in collaboration with ISRO. Aditya-L1 will be placed in a halo orbit around Lagrangian Point 1 (or L1), which is 1.5 million km away from the Earth in the direction of the sun. It is expected to cover the distance in four months' time. 

This strategic location will enable Aditya-L1 to continuously observe the sun without being hindered by eclipses or occultation, allowing scientists to study solar activities and their impact on space weather in real- time. 

Also, the spacecraft's data will help identify the sequence of processes that lead to solar eruptive events and contribute to a deeper understanding of space weather drivers. ISRO Chairman S Somanath on Thursday said the space agency was getting ready for the September 2 launch of the country’s ambitious solar mission, Aditya-L1 and that the countdown for its launch will start tomorrow.

The mission is scheduled to be launched on September 2 at 11.50 am from the Sriharikota spaceport in Andhra Pradesh.

Aditya-L1 spacecraft is designed for providing remote observations of the solar corona and in situ observations of the solar wind at L1 (Sun-Earth Lagrangian point), which is about 1.5 million kilometres from the earth.

It will be the first dedicated Indian space mission for observations of the Sun to be launched by the Bengaluru-headquartered space agency.

“We are just getting ready for the launch. The rocket and satellite are ready. We completed the rehearsal for the launch. So tomorrow we have to start the countdown for the day after tomorrow launch,” Somanath told reporters here.

“After launch we will see further,” he added.

Aditya-L1 is a fully indigenous effort with the participation of national institutions.

On the ongoing Chandrayaan 3 mission, where the rover Pragyan is currently moving around on the lunar surface, the ISRO chief said, “everything is working fine” and all data was coming through very well.

“Everything is working very healthy and we are hopeful that by the end of 14 (earth) days our mission will be successfully completed.” The countdown for the launch of India's maiden solar mission, Aditya L1 onboard the PSLV, commenced here on Friday, ISRO said.

The Sun observatory mission is all set to be launched from this spaceport at 11.50 am on Saturday, and comes close on the heels of India's successful moon expedition, Chandrayaan-3.

"PSLV-C57/Aditya-L1 Mission: The countdown leading to the launch at 11:50 Hrs. IST on Septermber 2, 2023," has started, ISRO said in an update on X, formerly Twitter.

The 23-hour 40-minute countdown commenced at 12:10 pm, it added.

ISRO Chairman S Somanath had earlier said the mission will take 125 days to reach the exact radius.

Aditya-L1 is designed for providing remote observations of the solar corona and in situ observations of the solar wind at L1 (Sun-Earth Lagrangian point), which is about 1.5 million kilometres from the earth.

It will be the first dedicated Indian space mission for observations of the Sun to be launched by the Bengaluru-headquartered space agency.