The Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) will carry out a major maneuver today. The Aditya L1 spacecraft will be instructed by India's first space-based solar observatory, located 15 lakh kilometers away, to move to a designated orbit.
Also read: Aditya-L1 mission: India's solar mission will reach insertion point on January 6, says ISRO. Everything you need to know
What will happen during the final orbital maneuver?
Former ISRO scientist and founder of NIMBUS Education, Manish Purohit, who has expertise in critical space missions like Chandrayaan-2 and Mangalyaan, informed HT that the maneuver will involve a 180-degree turn of the spacecraft. This advances the thrusters to slow the spacecraft while aiming for a different orbit. This maneuver only takes a few seconds.
Also read: Aditya L1 mission: India's solar mission to be launched into final orbit today, says ISRO
Aditya L1's liquid apogee engines are currently in a hibernation mode due to the cold space environment, since the last time they were fired a few months ago. When ISRO will control the engines, they will fire immediately for the specific duration and perform the maneuver exactly at that specific time. However, this implementation requires precision to avoid overdriving, underdriving, or mis-timing the engine firing.
Also read: Aditya-L1: India's first solar mission reaches destination 1.5 million km from Earth, says ISRO
Aditya L1 will face challenges arising from the complex 3D nature of this orbit after a halo orbit maneuver. The halo orbit is very complex because it revolves around the dynamically moving L1 point. The L1 point is in constant motion along the Earth-Sun line. So Aditya revolves around a non-stationary point that changes position as the Earth moves around the Sun.
Also read: Aditya L1 mission: What will happen after the spacecraft reaches its destination on January 6?
In AdityaL1, control moment gyros are used which help balance the spin. These gyroscopes are similar to those used by the International Space Station for orientation. In addition, the spacecraft's software continuously monitors position parameters and orbital details with ground stations.
What happens if the maneuver fails?
If the spacecraft fails to perform the maneuver in case of engine overload or underload and misses the sweet spot in the expected orbit range, there would be problems. The spacecraft may miss the gravity catch by the L1 point and enter a higher orbit, taking it out of the desired orbit. This would lead to higher fuel consumption, which is crucial for longer mission life.
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Published: Jan 6, 2024 1:35 PM IST