Despite costing 10,000 times more than a standard professional camera, space telescopes employ many of the core principles used in capturing images of celestial wonders in the vast expanse of space.
A case in point is the ongoing Aditya-L1 mission, focused on surveying the outer atmosphere of our Sun’s fiery hellscape. Recently, ISRO unveiled the initial images of the Sun in the 200-400 nanometer ultraviolet wavelength range, captured by the Solar Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope (SUIT), one of seven instruments aboard the spacecraft.
Accompanying the stunning image gallery, ISRO released a video showcasing the telescope’s shutter opening and closing to capture these remarkable images. Interestingly, the process mirrors that of household cameras. The shutter, akin to a camera’s panels, opens and closes to control the amount of light entering the device. The duration the shutter remains open determines the ‘shutter speed,’ allowing the camera to capture adequate data, especially in low-light conditions.
The video reveals a section of the Aditya-L1 spacecraft adorned with gold-like thermal insulation in the void of space. The hatch, serving as SUIT’s shutter, opens to capture sunlight across various non-visible wavelengths. After a brief moment, the shutter closes, preventing further light from reaching and being recorded by the instrument.
As per ISRO, the telescope successfully captured its first light science images on December 6, utilizing 11 different filters to generate various renditions of the Sun. These images provide a wealth of information about the star’s photosphere and chromosphere—the inner and middle layers of its atmosphere. They also highlight significant stellar features, including dark sunspots, bright plages, quiet Sun regions, and cloudy plasma filaments.
ISRO noted that SUIT observations will aid scientists in studying the dynamic coupling of the magnetized solar atmosphere, offering valuable insights into the impact of solar radiation on Earth’s climate.