Solar Eclipse Today: ISRO's Aditya-L1 to Track Sun During The Celestial Event | Top Points

New Delhi: India's coronagraphy spacecraft designed and developed by the ISRO for studying the solar atmosphere- Aditya L1 will track the behaviour and rays of the Sun on Monday, April 8, during the total solar eclipse. 

During the celestial event, the Sun will briefly get completely cloaked by the Moon, creating a moment of complete darkness in several countries. The Sun, Moon and the Earth will align in a straight line, leading to darkness during the daytime as the Moon will block the Sun light completely. 

According to reports, the Sun will remain covered for a total of four minutes, during which its enigmatic outer layer will be illuminated.

Aditya L1 to Track Sun During ‘Darkness’ 

Launched on September 2, 2023, Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) maiden solar mission Aditya L1 reached the Lagrange Point 1 (L1 point) earlier this year on January 6.  

Being at a position to track the Sun during the total solar eclipse, Aditya L1 will help the ISRO further study the chromosphere and corona of the star.

The mission is loaded with six instruments as it tracks and observes the Sun from the Lagrange Point, which is 1.5 million kilometres from the Earth.

Of the six instruments, Aditya L1 will use two- Visible Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC) and the Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT) to track the sun during celestial event.

The Aditya L1 mission aims to deepen our understanding of the impact of solar phenomena, including the solar corona and photosphere. It also studies the impact of the solar winds and related radiations.

The total eclipse will be visible from parts of North America, including Mexico, the United States and Canada. The major cities from where it will be visible are Dallas, Little Rock, Indianapolis, Cleveland, Buffalo and Burlington. The first solar eclipse of 2024 will not be visible from India.