Aditya-L1, bound for Sun, takes STEPS to study solar wind; big success for ISRO 

Photo Credit: ISRO

Aditya-L1 was launched towards the Sun on September 2, 2023, and now it has started conducting studies through the STEPS instrument, which is part of the ASPEX payload.

Photo Credit: ISRO

Aditya L1 started its journey towards the Sun on September 2, 2023. It will take the spacecraft about four months to reach the Lagrangian point 1 (L1).

Photo Credit: ISRO

Recently, ISRO reported that the spacecraft completed its manoeuvres and entered the Trans-Lagrangian 1. Now it will begin its 110-day journey towards the halo orbit.

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In a big triumph for ISRO, even before reaching the desired destination, Aditya-L1 has already started collecting data through its STEPS instrument.

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STEPS stands for the Supra Thermal and Energetic Particle Spectrometer and it is a part of the Aditya Solar wind Particle EXperiment (ASPEX) payload.

Photo Credit: NASA

PTI quoted Dr Dibyendu Chakrabarty, professor of Space and Atmospheric Sciences at the Physical Research Laboratory, “It has started functioning from within the magnetic field of the Earth since September 10.”

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According to officials, STEPS will be collecting crucial data on energetic particles in the solar wind which will help protect our space assets.

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The data collected by steps will contribute to understanding how the space weather works and how these energetic particles have an impact on the space environment.

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Aditya-L1 STEPS came into existence in Ahmedabad with the combined efforts of the PRL and the Space Application Centre (SAC).

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STEPS is equipped with six sensors that collect data about supra-thermal and energetic ions from different directions. 

Photo Credit: Pixabay

Aditya-L1 spacecraft is on a trajectory towards the L1 point which is about 1.5 million km away from the Earth. The location is perfect for it to study the Sun and how it affects space weather that impacts Earth.