India's pioneering solar mission, Aditya-L1, has achieved a significant milestone by completing its first halo orbit around the Sun-Earth L1 point, ISRO announced on Tuesday.
This accomplishment follows the spacecraft's seamless transition into its second halo orbit, facilitated by a precise station-keeping manoeuvre.
Launched on September 2, 2023, the Aditya-L1 mission aims to observe the sun from the advantageous Lagrangian point L1.
The spacecraft successfully entered its targeted halo orbit on January 6, 2024. In this orbit, Aditya-L1 takes 178 days to complete a revolution around the L1 point.
ISRO highlighted that the spacecraft encounters various perturbing forces during its journey in the halo orbit, necessitating periodic corrections to maintain its designated path.
Notably, the mission has already undergone two crucial station-keeping manoeuvres on February 22 and June 7. The latest manoeuvre, executed on Tuesday, ensured Aditya-L1's continued travel in the second halo orbit around L1.
The space agency explained that navigating the complex dynamics around the Sun-Earth L1 Lagrangian point requires sophisticated modeling and precise orbit adjustments.
ISRO’s state-of-the-art flight dynamics software, developed in-house at URSC, has been instrumental in accurately determining the trajectory and planning these critical manoeuvres.
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