The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has made 834 data sets gathered by AstroSat, India’s first space-based observatory, available to researchers, students and the public on September 26. ISRO launched the 1,513-kg AstroSat on September 28, 2015 with five payloads — Ultra Violet Imaging Telescope (UVIT), Large Area X-Ray Proportional Counters (LAXPC), Soft X-Ray Telescope (SXT), Cadmium Zinc Telluride Imager (CZTI) and Scanning Sky Monitor (SSM), along with one more instrument — Charged Particle Monitor (CPM). The Pune-based Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA), scientists from national institutions like Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Mumbai, Indian Institute of Astrophysics (IIA), Raman Research Institute (RRI) from Bengaluru and Physical Research Laboratory (PRL), Ahmedabad, contributed in this multi-wavelength space mission, anchored by ISRO. “It is for the first time that the data sets, gathered over the last two years, will be available in the public domain. This means that from now on, we will be able to engage with more university students and researchers,” said Dipankar Bhattacharya, senior scientist and one of the key persons coordinating the mission at IUCAA. For two years now, IUCAA has been operating an AstroSat Science Support Cell dedicated to channel and allocate satellite observation time to users. Until now, the data was shared only with the research teams that had got their scientific proposals approved. The teams included researchers from India and abroad. While all onboard instruments are functioning well and performing in their designated capacities, a channel each from LAXPC and UVIT have fallen silent. But this has not caused a significant impact on the data gathering process, Bhattacharya told The Indian Express. “One out of the three channels of both LAXPC and UVIT are no longer functional. Most of the scientific projects will continue, though it may take slightly longer to complete,” he said. The Indian space agency has already embarked on planning an advanced space mission for astronomy, the second after AstroSat, proposals for which are under review. Bhattacharya said, “ISRO has received many proposals and they are currently undergoing review. Multiple next-generation space astronomy missions, planned for commissioning over the next couple of decades, should hopefully begin to take shape by the time AstroSat phases out.” He said the AstroSat mission has given them experience for future space missions. “It has been an immense learning experience, and we now know what is needed to make a space mission successful. We will be able to use it in future space missions,” he said.
