Aditya L-1 takes a selfie and shares pictures of the Earth and Moon

Aditya-L1 is India’s first solar mission. The Aditya-L1 spacecraft was launched into space aboard ISRO’s Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV-C57) on September 2, 2023, from the Second Launch Pad of Satish Dhawan Space Centre (SDSC) in Sriharikota, Orissa. Following a 63-minute and 20-second flight, Aditya-L1 successfully entered an elliptical orbit measuring 235 kilometres by 19,500 kilometres around Earth.

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has shared a selfie and the images of the Earth and Moon taken by Aditya-L1. The Indian space agency ISRO has uploaded the images on the social media platform X, formerly Twitter. “Aditya-L1 Mission: Onlooker! Aditya-L1, destined for the Sun-Earth L1 point, takes a selfie and images of the Earth and the Moon.

Successfully completed second earth-bound manoeuvre
Earlier this week, Aditya-L1 successfully completed its second earth-bound manoeuvre. ISRO made this announcement during the early hours of Tuesday (September 5), marking a crucial step in the mission’s progress. The manoeuvre, known as the “second Earth-bound manoeuvre (EBN#2),” was executed by ISRO’s Telemetry, Tracking, and Command Network (ISTRAC) located in Bengaluru. The operation was closely monitored by ISRO’s ground stations in Mauritius, Bengaluru, and Port Blair.

The mission’s initial earth-bound manoeuvre was successfully executed on September 3. The spacecraft is anticipated to undergo two more earth-bound orbital manoeuvres before it is transferred to its final destination, the Lagrange point L1. Aditya-L1 is projected to reach its designated orbit at the L1 point after approximately 127 days.

The total travel time from launch to L1 would take about four months for Aditya-L1 and the distance will be about 1.5 million km from the Earth.