Aditya L1, India’s ambitious mission to study the sun, took a major step forward today and now started observing solar winds. According to the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), the Aditya Solar Wind Particle Experiment (ASPEX) payload onboard the satellite has begun operations and is operating smoothly.
The ASPEX comprises two instruments: the SWIS (Solar Wind Ion Spectrometer) and the STEPS (SupraThermal and Energetic Particle Spectrometer). While STEPS began operations on September 10, the SWIS instrument was activated on Saturday and has performed admirably, according to ISRO.
The space agency also posted a picture on X showing the energy changes in proton and alpha particle counts captured by the new payload.
Aditya-L1 Mission:
The Solar Wind Ion Spectrometer (SWIS), the second instrument in the Aditya Solar wind Particle Experiment (ASPEX) payload is operational.
The histogram illustrates the energy variations in proton and alpha particle counts captured by SWIS over 2-days.… pic.twitter.com/I5BRBgeYY5
— ISRO (@isro) December 2, 2023
On September 2, the mission lifted off from Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh. The mission’s primary goals include studying the physics of the solar corona and its heating mechanism, solar wind acceleration, coupling and dynamics of the solar atmosphere, solar wind distribution and temperature anisotropy, and the origin of Coronal Mass Ejections (CME) and flares, as well as near-Earth space weather.
Among India’s other ongoing projects is a program for human spaceflight that aims to launch astronauts into orbit for the first time possibly by 2025.