Dr Ramya Anche will direct the 2030 SmallSat project investigating interstellar dust, with Bengaluru and Pune institutes joining the effort.
Simultaneous readings from India's solar mission and Europe's coronagraph yield fresh detail on coronal mass ejection speeds and thermal energy.
The flash of energy travelled through 80 per cent of cosmic history before hitting telescopes on Earth.
Atmospheric traces of rare metals and a 4.4-day orbit point to a gas giant condensed from ejected stellar debris.
