Aditya-L1 Sun Mission update: ISRO says Aditya-L1 ‘successfully escapes sphere of Earth’s influence’

INTERNATIONAL DESK: The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) on Saturday said that Aditya-L1 spacecraft has travelled beyond a distance of 9.2 lakh kilometres from Earth, successfully escaping the sphere of Earth’s influence. It is now navigating its path towards the Sun-Earth Lagrange Point 1 (L1).

This is a major milestone for the Aditya-L1 mission, and for the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). It is the second time in succession that ISRO could send a spacecraft outside the sphere of influence of the Earth, the first time being the Mars Orbiter Mission.

ISRO took to X to announce the update. “Aditya-L1 Mission: The spacecraft has travelled beyond a distance of 9.2 lakh kilometres from Earth, successfully escaping the sphere of Earth’s influence. It is now navigating its path towards the Sun-Earth Lagrange Point 1 (L1).

This is the second time in succession that ISRO could send a spacecraft outside the sphere of influence of the Earth, the first time being the Mars Orbiter Mission,” the space agency wrote.

The Aditya L1 mission reached one step closer to the space at the Lagrange Point 1. The spacecraft took off from India on September 2.

Lagrange points are distinct points in space where the gravitational forces of two massive entities balance the centripetal force experienced by a smaller one. As a result, they are perfect for spacecraft since they require little fuel for orbit corrections.

Aditya-L1 will be in a ‘Halo orbit’ around the Sun-Earth L1 point, around 15 lakh km away from Earth.

These orbits are three-dimensional and periodic, and they provide out-of-plane motion relative to the primary bodies. The orbit’s size means that it can be seen continually from Earth, forming a halo around Lagrange Point.

The spacecraft at the Sun-Earth L1 point provide critical early warnings of hazardous space weather events, assisting in the protection of both orbiting space assets and ground-based infrastructure.

Despite the low population density at the L1 point and the large distance between spacecraft, ISRO intends to conduct periodic close approach assessments for Aditya L1.

The Aditya L1 is scheduled to arrive on January 6, 2024. (BT)