The countdown for the country's ambitious solar mission, Aditya-L1, will begin on Friday. The mission is scheduled to be launched on September 2 at 11.50 a.m. from the Sriharikota spaceport in Andhra Pradesh.
ISRO Chairman S Somanath on Thursday told reporters that the space agency was "getting ready" for the launch. "The rocket and satellite are ready. We completed the rehearsal for the launch. So tomorrow we have to start the countdown for the day after tomorrow's launch," Somanath added.
Aditya-L1 spacecraft is designed to provide remote observations of the solar corona and in situ observations of the solar wind at L1 (Sun-Earth Lagrangian point), which is about 1.5 million kilometres from the earth. It will be the first dedicated Indian space mission for observations of the Sun to be launched by the Bengaluru-headquartered space agency.
The Aditya L-1 spacecraft is a 1,500 kg-class satellite and represents a specialised scientific mission by the ISRO.
Chandrayaan- 3
The Instrument of Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) payload on Chandrayaan-3's lander module Vikram recorded a natural event that occurred on the lunar surface on August 26, the source of which is still under investigation, Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) said on Thursday.
"The Instrument for Lunar Seismic Activity (ILSA) payload on the Chandrayaan 3 Lander is the first instance of a Micro Electro Mechanical Systems (MEMS) technology-based instrument on the moon. It has recorded the vibrations occurring due to the movements of Rover and other payloads. Additionally, it has recorded an event, appearing to be a natural one, on August 26, 2023. The source of this event is under investigation," ISRO said.
ILSA comprises a cluster of six high-sensitivity accelerometers. The core sensing element consists of a spring-mass system with comb-structured electrodes and external vibrations lead to a deflection of the spring, resulting in a change in capacitance which is converted into voltage.
ILSA's primary objective is to measure ground vibrations generated by natural quakes, impacts, and artificial events.
Meanwhile, on the ongoing Chandrayaan 3 mission, where the rover Pragyan is currently moving around on the lunar surface, the ISRO chief said, "everything is working fine" and all data was coming through very well.
"Everything is working very healthy and we are hopeful that by the end of 14 (earth) days our mission will be successfully completed," he added.
