<p>India’s first space-based observatory to study the Sun, Aditya-L1, has undergone a trajectory correction, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said on Sunday.</p><p>It said a Trajectory Correction Manoeuvre (TCM), originally scheduled as a provisional operation, was performed on October 6, for about 16 seconds. </p><p>It said the spacecraft is "healthy" and on its way to L1, the first Lagrange point in the Sun-Earth system where it will be positioned, in January 2024, to observe the Sun.</p><p>The space agency said the manoeuvre was necessary to correct the trajectory after evaluating the Trans-Lagrangian Point Insertion (TL1I) manoeuvre which was performed on September 19. </p>.Gaganyaan: Isro set for unmanned test flight.<p>“TCM ensures that the spacecraft is on its intended path towards the halo orbit insertion around L1. As Aditya-L1 continues to move ahead, the magnetometer will be turned on again within a few days,” ISRO said.</p><p>On September 30, the agency said the spacecraft had left the Earth’s sphere of influence and travelled beyond a distance of 9.2 lakh kilometres from the Earth.</p><p><strong>The L1 advantage</strong></p><p>L1 – located approximately 15 lakh kilometres from the Earth – is one of the five Lagrange points where the gravitational force of the two primary bodies (the Sun and the Earth) precisely equals the centripetal force required for a small object (the spacecraft) to move with these bodies.</p><p>Aditya-L1, launched on September 2, carries seven payloads designed to closely study the Sun through multiple observation channels. The spacecraft’s positioning, in a halo orbit around L1, will give it the advantage of minimal orbit corrections and fuel requirements.</p>
<p>India’s first space-based observatory to study the Sun, Aditya-L1, has undergone a trajectory correction, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said on Sunday.</p><p>It said a Trajectory Correction Manoeuvre (TCM), originally scheduled as a provisional operation, was performed on October 6, for about 16 seconds. </p><p>It said the spacecraft is "healthy" and on its way to L1, the first Lagrange point in the Sun-Earth system where it will be positioned, in January 2024, to observe the Sun.</p><p>The space agency said the manoeuvre was necessary to correct the trajectory after evaluating the Trans-Lagrangian Point Insertion (TL1I) manoeuvre which was performed on September 19. </p>.Gaganyaan: Isro set for unmanned test flight.<p>“TCM ensures that the spacecraft is on its intended path towards the halo orbit insertion around L1. As Aditya-L1 continues to move ahead, the magnetometer will be turned on again within a few days,” ISRO said.</p><p>On September 30, the agency said the spacecraft had left the Earth’s sphere of influence and travelled beyond a distance of 9.2 lakh kilometres from the Earth.</p><p><strong>The L1 advantage</strong></p><p>L1 – located approximately 15 lakh kilometres from the Earth – is one of the five Lagrange points where the gravitational force of the two primary bodies (the Sun and the Earth) precisely equals the centripetal force required for a small object (the spacecraft) to move with these bodies.</p><p>Aditya-L1, launched on September 2, carries seven payloads designed to closely study the Sun through multiple observation channels. The spacecraft’s positioning, in a halo orbit around L1, will give it the advantage of minimal orbit corrections and fuel requirements.</p>