description Solar Orbiter Overview
Solar Orbiter is a spacecraft developed by the European Space Agency with NASA participation to study the Sun and the inner heliosphere. Launched in 2020, it combines remote-sensing instruments with sensors that measure particles, fields, and plasma around the spacecraft. Repeated gravity assists and close solar passes allow it to observe the Sun from increasingly inclined orbits, supporting research into the solar wind, magnetic activity, and the polar regions.
help Solar Orbiter FAQ
When was the Solar Orbiter mission launched?
Solar Orbiter launched on February 10, 2020, aboard an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida. It is a collaborative mission between the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA.
What makes Solar Orbiter's view of the Sun unique?
Solar Orbiter is designed to capture the first detailed images of the Sun's polar regions, which cannot be seen from Earth or from spacecraft orbiting in the ecliptic plane. Over the course of its mission, gravitational assists from Venus gradually tilt its orbit to rise above the solar system's plane.
How close does Solar Orbiter get to the Sun?
Solar Orbiter's perihelion passes bring it within approximately 42 million kilometers (about 26 million miles) of the Sun's surface—closer than the orbit of Mercury. A custom heat shield protects the spacecraft and its instruments during these encounters.
What instruments does Solar Orbiter carry?
Solar Orbiter carries ten scientific instruments, including the Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI), the Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager (PHI), and an in-situ suite for measuring solar wind particles and magnetic fields. Its observations are designed to complement those of NASA's Parker Solar Probe.
explore Explore More
Reviews & Comments
Write a Review
Be the first to review
Share your thoughts with the community and help others make better decisions.
