Analysis: After Shiva Shakti On Moon, ISRO's Celestial Surya Namaskar

ISRO has announced that its solar observatory will lift off from India's space port Sriharikota on 2 September 2023, a little before noon, at 11.50 am.

Within days of soft landing on the moon, the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) is now aiming for the Sun. This will be India's first outing towards the Sun. A "celestial surya namaskar" of sorts.

ISRO has announced that its solar observatory will lift off from India's space port Sriharikota on 2 September 2023, a little before noon, at 11.50 am. ISRO is deploying its workhorse and very reliable Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) for this mission.

As the Indian satellite intends to study the Sun, it is appropriately named Aditya-L1. ISRO says, "Our Sun is the nearest star and the largest object in the solar system. The estimated age of sun is about 4.5 billion years. It is a hot glowing ball of hydrogen and helium gases. The distance to the sun from the earth is about 150 million km, and it is the source of energy for our solar system. Without solar energy, life on earth as we know it cannot exist. The gravity of the sun holds all the objects of the solar system together. At the central region of the Sun, known as 'core', the temperature can be as high as 15 million degree Celsius. At this temperature, a process called nuclear fusion takes place in the core which powers the sun. The visible surface of the sun, known as photosphere, is relatively cool and has a temperature of about 5,500 degrees celsius.