Aditya-L1

Aditya-L1
Aditya-L1 in preflight
Mission typeSolar observation
OperatorISRO
COSPAR ID2023-132A
SATCAT no.57754
Websitewww.isro.gov.in/Aditya_L1.html
Mission duration5.2 years (planned)
1 year, 9 months and 15 days (elapsed)
Spacecraft properties
SpacecraftPSLV-XL/C-57
Spacecraft typePSLV
BusI-1K
ManufacturerISRO / IUCAA / IIA
Payload mass1,500 kg (3,300 lb)
Start of mission
Launch date2 September 2023 (2023-09-02), 11:50 IST (06:20 UTC)
RocketPSLV-XL C57
Launch siteSatish Dhawan Space Centre
ContractorISRO
Orbital parameters
Reference systemSun–Earth L1 orbit
RegimeHalo orbit
Period177.86 days
Epoch6 January 2024

Mission Insignia

Aditya-L1 (Sanskrit: Āditya IPA: [aːd̪it̪jɐ] 'Sun', L1 'Lagrange Point 1') is a coronagraphy spacecraft for studying the solar atmosphere, designed and developed by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and various other Indian Space Research Institutes. It is orbiting at about 1.5 million km from Earth in a halo orbit around the Lagrange point 1 (L1) between the Earth and the Sun, where it will study the solar atmosphere, solar magnetic storms, and their impact on the environment around the Earth.

It is the first Indian mission dedicated to observe the Sun. Nigar Shaji is the project's director. Aditya-L1 was launched aboard the PSLV C57 at 11:50 IST on 2 September 2023. It successfully achieved its intended orbit nearly an hour later, and separated from its fourth stage at 12:57 IST. It was inserted at the L1 point on 6 January 2024, at 4:17 pm IST.

In February 2024, Aditya-L1 observed a powerful flare erupt from Earth's sun from its vantage point–a distance of about 1 million miles (1.5 million kilometers).