India's first sun-studying observatory, Aditya-L1, has captured breathtaking images of the sun's surface using its Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT). The spacecraft, which launched on September 2, is about a month away from reaching its final destination in L1 orbit, approximately 1 million miles from Earth.

The SUIT payload, operated by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) in collaboration with multiple institutions, began capturing images on November 20. The recently released images showcase various features on the sun's surface, including sunspots, a solar "plage," and quiet, inactive areas.

The images, taken in near ultraviolet wavelengths ranging from 200 to 400 nm, provide unprecedented insights into the intricate details of our star. They include the first-ever full-disk representations of the sun, revealing its complex nature.

Durgesh Tripathi, the principal investigator of the SUIT payload, described this opportunity as a "lifetime opportunity to conceive a space telescope and get to see its first light observations."

The sun's visible "surface," known as the photosphere, is a thin envelope of hydrogen and helium, about 62 miles thick. It is home to sunspots, which are dark, planet-size regions of intense magnetic fields that often generate powerful solar flares. Aditya-L1's images capture four distinct sunspots, including one located close to the sun's equator. Additionally, a calm region to the left of the equator, labeled as the "quiet sun," is visible in the images. Below the equator, another feature known as the plage, a hot region typically seen in the chromosphere, is also observed.

The Aditya-L1 spacecraft, carrying seven science instruments, is on a mission to study solar wind particles and monitor the sun for upcoming solar flares. The spacecraft has already passed the sphere of Earth's gravitational influence and is on track to reach its final destination later this month or early next. Once in L1 orbit, the observatory will continuously observe the sun while using minimal fuel and requiring few orbital maneuvers to remain stable.

The Aditya-L1 mission is expected to provide groundbreaking insights into the behavior of solar wind particles and enhance our understanding of the sun's complex dynamics. With the release of these stunning images, scientists and researchers eagerly anticipate the wealth of data that will soon be gathered by India's pioneering sun observatory.

Stay tuned for more updates as Aditya-L1 reaches its cosmic accommodations and begins its groundbreaking scientific investigations.