Aditya-L1 is India's first space-based solar mission, aimed at studying the Sun.
Launched on September 2, 2023, Aditya-L1 was placed in orbit around the first Earth-Sun Lagrange Point (L1) on January 6, 2024.
Breakthrough Observation: The Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT) payload captured the first-ever image of a solar flare ‘kernel’ in the Sun’s lower atmosphere.
On February 22, 2025, SUIT observed an intense X6.3-class solar flare, one of the most powerful solar eruptions.
SUIT detected brightening in the Near Ultra Violet (NUV) wavelength (200-400 nm), offering unprecedented detail in this range.
The observation revealed that the flare's energy spread through different layers of the Sun’s atmosphere.
The brightening in the lower solar atmosphere was linked to a rise in the temperature of plasma in the Sun’s corona.
The findings support existing theories about solar flare physics and provide new data to reshape understanding of flare mechanisms.
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