New Dehli - A rare total solar eclipse is occurring today, visible across parts of North America. However, India's first space-based solar observatory, Aditya L1, will miss this celestial spectacle. This is not due to any error but because the satellite is strategically placed to ensure an uninterrupted view of the Sun throughout the year.
The Aditya L1 spacecraft orbits around the Sun-Earth Lagrange Point 1 (L1), about 1.5 million km from Earth. This vantage point prevents the Moon from ever blocking the Sun's view, allowing continuous solar observations without any eclipses.
"Aditya L1 will not see the solar eclipse as the Moon is behind the spacecraft at L1. The eclipse visible on Earth doesn't have much significance at that location," explained ISRO Chairman S. Somanath.
Instead of witnessing natural eclipses, Aditya L1 creates artificial solar eclipses using its Visible Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC) instrument to study the Sun's corona effectively.
While Aditya misses today's event, scientists like Dr. Dipankar Banerjee from the Indian Institute of Astrophysics will conduct ground-based observations during the eclipse. This data will be compared with Aditya's observations for that period.
The total solar eclipse offers a rare opportunity for skywatchers in North America to witness the Moon completely obscuring the Sun, briefly turning day into night. However, NASA cautions against unsafe eclipse viewing without proper eye protection.
