Context: ISRO’s Aditya-L1 Joins Global Effort in Landmark Solar Storm Study.
Key Findings
Magnetic Reconnection:
oDuring the storm, Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs) collided in space.
oThe CMEs compressed each other, causing magnetic field lines inside one CME to snap and reconnect in new configurations.
Impact:
oSudden reversal of magnetic field strengthened the storm.
oParticle acceleration occurred due to increased energy, confirming the magnetic reconnection phenomenon.
About Aditya-L1
Nature: India’s first space-based solar observatory mission.
Launch: September 2023 via PSLV-C57.
Orbit: Halo orbit around Lagrangian Point 1 (L1), ~1.5 million km from Earth.
oAdvantage: Continuous, uninterrupted view of the Sun.
Payloads: 7 scientific instruments including:
oVisible Emission Line Coronagraph (VELC)
oSolar Low Energy X-ray Spectrometer (SoLEXS)
oPlasma Analyser Package for Aditya (PAPA)
Significance for Science
Helps understand solar storms and their impact on Earth’s magnetosphere.
Crucial for space weather forecasting to protect satellites, power grids, and communication systems.
Provides insights into magnetic reconnection, a fundamental astrophysical process in plasma physics.
IAS-2026 - OPTIONAL / GEOGRAPHY / PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION / SOCIOLOGY / ANTHROPOLOGY / ORIENTATION ON 03 & 04-10-2025 
