China Launches First Solar Observatory

By: Seat Earnings

In yet another milestone achieved by China in space science, its first dedicated space observatory has been successfully launched on the 9th of October. The primary objective of the mission, according to Chinese scientists is to closely observe events happening in the Sun

Place Of Launch

The Advanced Space-Based Solar Observatory (ASO-S) was lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre situated in Inner Mongolia.

Solar Observatory

The solar observatory, named after Kuafu, a giant in Chinese mythology who indefatigably chased the sun, will extend its working hours to over 96 percent of the year.

The observatory weighing 888 kilograms is aimed to observe the two most violent activities on the Sun from a distance of 720 kilometers from Earth's surface. Observatory took over a decade to complete, according to Gan Weiqun, the chief scientist of the mission.

The Chinese observatory has three main instruments on board. The first is a magnetograph, which is purposed for studying the magnetic field of the Sun. the second is an X-ray imager which will detect the high energy radiations emanating from the solar flares and the third one is a coronagraph, designed to monitor the outer atmosphere or the corona of the Sun.

China Daily reports that it would also provide data on the powerful radiation and magnetic fields generated by these phenomena and help scientists understand how these affect the sensitive equipment on Earth and in orbit equipment like satellites, electronics, power grids and internet services.

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