Solar Orbiter

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Solar Orbiter
Solar Orbiter ESA20813950.jpg
Artist's impression of the Solar Orbiter orbiting the Sun
Mission type Heliophysics
Operator ESA / NASA
COSPAR ID 2020-010A OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
SATCAT no. 45167 OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Website Official website OOjs UI icon edit-ltr-progressive.svg
Mission duration7 years (nominal)
+ 3 years (extended) [1] [2]
Elapsed: 5 years, 11 months and 12 days
Spacecraft properties
Manufacturer Airbus Defence and Space
Launch mass1,800 kg (4,000 lb) [3]
Payload mass209 kg (461 lb) [4]
Dimensions2.5 × 3.1 × 2.7 m (8 × 10 × 9 ft) [3]
Power180 watts [3]
Start of mission
Launch date10 February 2020, 04:03 UTC [5]
Rocket Atlas V 411 (AV-087) [6]
Launch site Cape Canaveral, SLC‑41
Contractor United Launch Alliance
Entered serviceNovember 2021
(start of main mission)
Orbital parameters
Reference system Heliocentric
Regime Elliptic orbit
Perihelion altitude 0.28 AU (42 million km; 26 million mi) [6]
Aphelion altitude 0.91 AU (136 million km; 85 million mi)
Inclination 24° (nominal mission)
33° (extended mission)
Period 168 days
Main telescope
Type Ritchey–Chrétien reflector
Diameter160 mm
Focal length2.5 m
Wavelengths Visible light, ultraviolet, X-rays
Solar orbiter insignia.png
Insignia for the Solar Orbiter mission.
←  CHEOPS
Euclid  →
←  Parker

The Solar Orbiter (SolO) [7] is a Sun-observing probe developed by the European Space Agency (ESA) with a NASA contribution. Solar Orbiter, designed to obtain detailed measurements of the inner heliosphere and the nascent solar wind, also performs close observations of the polar regions of the Sun which is difficult to do from Earth. These observations are important in investigating how the Sun creates and controls its heliosphere.

Contents

Solar Orbiter makes observations of the Sun from an eccentric orbit moving as close as ≈60 solar radii (RS), or 0.284 astronomical units (au), placing it inside Mercury's perihelion of 0.3075 au. [8] During the mission the orbital inclination will be raised to about 24°. The total mission cost is US$1.5 billion, counting both ESA and NASA contributions. [9] Solar Orbiter was launched on 10 February 2020 from Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA. The nominal mission is planned until the end of 2026, with a potential extension until 2030. [10]

A comparison of the size of the Sun as seen from Earth (left, 1 au) and from the Solar Orbiter spacecraft (0.284 au, right) Suncomparison.svg
A comparison of the size of the Sun as seen from Earth (left, 1 au) and from the Solar Orbiter spacecraft (0.284 au, right)
The Solar Orbiter structural thermal model shortly before leaving the Airbus Defence and Space facility in Stevenage, UK Solar Orbiter Structural Thermal Model.jpg
The Solar Orbiter structural thermal model shortly before leaving the Airbus Defence and Space facility in Stevenage, UK
Solar Orbiter spacecraft is prepared for encapsulation in the United Launch Alliance Atlas V payload fairing. Solar Orbiter spacecraft is prepared for encapsulation in the United Launch Alliance Atlas V payload fairing.jpg
Solar Orbiter spacecraft is prepared for encapsulation in the United Launch Alliance Atlas V payload fairing.

Mission overview

During the initial cruise phase, which lasted until November 2021, Solar Orbiter performed two gravity-assist manoeuvres around Venus and one around Earth to alter the spacecraft's trajectory, guiding it towards the innermost regions of the Solar System. At the same time, Solar Orbiter acquired in situ data to characterise and calibrate its remote-sensing instruments. The first close solar pass took place on 26 March 2022 at around a third of Earth's distance from the Sun. [11] [12]

The spacecraft's orbit has been chosen to be in resonance with Venus, which means that it will return to the planet's vicinity every few orbits and can again use the planet's gravity to alter or tilt its orbit. Initially, Solar Orbiter was confined to the same orbital plane as the planets, but each encounter of Venus will increase its orbital inclination. For example, following the 2025 Venus encounter it makes solar passes at 17° inclination, increasing to 33° during a proposed mission extension phase, bringing even more of the polar regions into direct view. [11]

The spacecraft makes a close approach to the Sun every six months. [3] The closest approaches are positioned to allow a repeated study of the same region of the solar atmosphere. Solar Orbiter is able to observe the magnetic activity building up in the atmosphere that can lead to powerful solar flares or eruptions. [13]

Researchers also have the chance to coordinate observations with NASA's Parker Solar Probe mission (2018–present) which is performing measurements of the Sun's extended corona, [14] [15] as well as other ground-based assets such as the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope. [16] [17]

Objectives

The objective of the mission is to perform close-up, high-resolution studies of the Sun and its inner heliosphere. The new understanding will help answer these questions: [18]

Spacecraft

The Solar Orbiter spacecraft is a Sun-pointed, three-axis stabilised platform with a dedicated heat shield to provide protection from the high levels of solar flux near perihelion. The 21 sensors were configured on the spacecraft to allow each to conduct its in-situ or remote-sensing experiments with both access to and protection from the solar environment. Solar Orbiter has inherited technology from previous missions, such as the solar arrays from ESA's BepiColombo Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO). The solar arrays can be rotated about their longitudinal axis to avoid overheating when close to the Sun. A battery pack provides supplementary power at other points in the mission such as eclipse periods encountered during planetary flybys. [23]

Communication

The Telemetry, Tracking, and Command Subsystem provides the communication link capability with the Earth in X-band. The subsystem supports telemetry, telecommand and ranging. Low-gain antennas are used for Launch and Early Orbit Phase (LEOP) and function as a back-up during the mission phase when steerable medium- and high-gain antennas are in use. [23]

The High-Temperature High-Gain Antenna needs to point to a wide range of positions to achieve a link with the ground station and to be able to downlink sufficient volumes of data. Its design was adapted from the BepiColombo mission. The antenna can be folded in to gain protection from Solar Orbiter's heat shield if necessary. Most data will therefore initially be stored in on-board memory and sent back to Earth at the earliest possible opportunity. [23]

During nominal science operations, science data is downlinked for eight hours during each communication period with the ground station. Additional eight-hour downlink passes are scheduled as needed to reach the required total science data return of the mission. The Solar Orbiter ground segment makes maximum reuse of ESA's infrastructure for Deep Space missions:

The Science Operations Centre was responsible for mission planning and the generation of payload operations requests to the MOC, as well as science data archiving. The SOC has been operational for the active science phase of the mission, i.e. from the beginning of the Cruise Phase onwards. The handover of payload operations from the MOC to the SOC is performed at the end of the Near-Earth Commissioning Phase (NECP). ESA's Malargüe Station in Argentina will be used for all operations throughout the mission, with the ground stations of New Norcia Station, Australia, and Cebreros Station, Spain, acting as backup when necessary. [24] [1]

Instruments

The flight model of the Electrostatic Analyser System (EAS), which is part of the Solar Wind Analyser (SWA) Suite Solar Orbiter EAS instrument (Flight Model) (24967051097).jpg
The flight model of the Electrostatic Analyser System (EAS), which is part of the Solar Wind Analyser (SWA) Suite

The science payload is composed of 10 instruments: [25]

Heliospheric in-situ instruments (4)

STIX STIX.jpg
STIX

Solar remote-sensing instruments (6)

Institutions involved

The following institutions operate each instrument: [31]

Mission timeline

The launch of Solar Orbiter from Cape Canaveral at 11.03pm EST on 9 February 2020 (US date) Solar Orbiter launch closeup.jpg
The launch of Solar Orbiter from Cape Canaveral at 11.03pm EST on 9 February 2020 (US date)
Solar Orbiter--journey around the Sun Solar Orbiter- journey around the Sun ESA21809047.jpg
Solar Orbiter—journey around the Sun
Timeline of X-class flares from active region AR3664 that caused the solar storms of May 2024 Timeline of X-class flares from active region AR3664.png
Timeline of X-class flares from active region AR3664 that caused the solar storms of May 2024
Why Solar Orbiter is angling towards the Sun's poles Why Solar Orbiter is angling towards the Sun's poles ESA509796.png
Why Solar Orbiter is angling towards the Sun's poles
Solar Orbiter traces superfast electrons back to Sun Solar Orbiter traces superfast electrons back to Sun ESA511998.jpg
Solar Orbiter traces superfast electrons back to Sun
Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI) video of the Sun from 9-12 November 2025 Solar fireworks caught on camera ESA514751.gif
Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI) video of the Sun from 9–12 November 2025

Before launch

The €319 million contract to build orbiter was awarded to Astrium UK in April 2012 [35] The spacecraft's solar shield completed 2 week bake test in June 2014 [36] In April 2015, the launch was set back from July 2017 to October 2018. [37] In August 2017, Solar Orbiter was considered on track for a launch in February 2019. [38] The spacecraft is shipped to IABG in Germany to begin the environmental test campaign in September 2018. [39]

Launch

The Atlas V 411 (AV-087) lifted off from SLC-41 at Cape Canaveral, Florida, on 10 February 2020 at 04:03 UTC. The Solar Orbiter spacecraft separated from the Centaur upper stage nearly 53 minutes later, and ESA acquired the first signals from the spacecraft a few minutes later. [9]

Cruise phase

After launch, Solar Orbiter entered the crusie phase, which lasted until late 2021. [40] Using repeated gravity assists from Earth and Venus, the spacecraft reached its operational orbit, an elliptical orbit with perihelion 0.29 AU and aphelion 0.91 AU. The first flyby was of Venus in December 2020. [41]

In June 2020, Solar Orbiter came within 77,000,000 km (48,000,000 mi) of the Sun, and captured the closest pictures of the Sun ever taken. [42]

During its cruise towards Venus, Solar Orbiter passed through the ion tail of comet C/2019 Y4 (ATLAS) from 31 May to 1 June 2020. It passed through the comet's dust tail on 6 June 2020. [43] [44] In December 2021, it flew through the tail of comet C/2021 A1 Leonard. [45]

In August 2021, the second Venus flyby happened only 33 hours before another interplanetary spacecraft by ESA, BepiColombo , conducted its gravity assist at the same planet. Both spacecraft used their science instruments to study the magnetic, plasma, and particle environment around Venus during their flybys, offering unique multipoint datasets. Solar Orbiter's SoloHI imager observed the nightside of Venus, surrounded by a bright crescent of the dayside, in the days before closest approach. Solar Orbiter's magnetometer observed changes in Venus's magnetic environment along the trajectory, including a sharp drop as the spacecraft crossed the bow shock. [46] [47] [48]

Nominal mission phase

Over the expected mission duration of 7 years, Solar Orbiter will use additional gravity assists from Venus to raise its inclination from 0° to 24°, allowing it a better view of the Sun's poles. If an extended mission is approved, the inclination could rise further to 33°. [1] [49]

2022

The highest resolution image of the Sun's full disc and outer atmosphere, the corona, so far have been taken on 7 March 2022. [50] In September 2022, scientists suggested a solution to the magnetic switchback mystery based on Solar Orbiter data from March 2022. [51]

Between 18 and 24 October 2022, the first coordinated observations of the Sun by Solar Orbiter and Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope were performed to demonstrate how such high-resolution joint observations can help address important scientific questions in the field. Coordinated data were successfully collected at several times throughout the week, enabling studies of coronal loop physics, the formation and evolution of small-scale active region brightenings, and coronal rain dynamics. [17]

In 2022, Solar Orbiter and Parker Solar Probe (PSP) planners collaborated to study why the Sun's atmosphere is 150 times hotter than its surface. Solar Orbiter observed the Sun from 140 million kilometers, while PSP simultaneously observed the Sun's corona from nearly 9 million kilometers. [52] [53]

2024

In March 2024, both Solar Orbiter and Parker Solar Probe (PSP) were at their closest approaches to the Sun, PSP at 7.3 million km, and Solar Orbiter at 45 million km. Solar Orbiter observed the Sun, while PSP sampled the plasma of the solar wind, allowing scientists to compare data from both probes. [54]

In mid-May 2024, the active sunspot region AR3664 caused the biggest solar storm to hit Earth in over 20 years. Solar Orbiter was able to observe the active region in late May, when it was facing away from Earth, and documented the strongest solar flare yet of solar cycle 25 on 20 May, followed by a surge of fast ions and electrons detected by the EPD instrument. After that, the spacecraft's Metis coronagraph observed a coronal mass ejection, whose effects on the spacecraft's environment were detected by the MAG magnetometer about one day later. The solar flare of 20 May was also detected by other ESA spacecraft, BepiColombo and Mars Express , as a large increase in the number of memory errors. [34]

2025

In February 2025, Solar Orbiter left the orbital plane of the solar system after successfully completing the 4th Venus flyby, [55] tilting its orbit to 17°. On 11 June 2025, the mission's first images and videos of the Sun's south pole (taken in March 2025) were released. These are the first images of the Sun's poles taken from outside the ecliptic plane. [56]

In September 2025, scientists published CoSEE-Cat: A Comprehensive Solar Energetic Electron event Catalogue and identified two distinct types of solar energetic electrons, one associated with intense solar flares and other with coronal mass ejections, using in situ data from Solar Orbiter. [57] [58]

In November 2025, scientists published first results based on the March 2025 observations of the Sun's south pole. The supergranulation data from the PHI and EUI instruments show that, contrary to expectations and previous ecliptic-plane observations, Sun's magnetic field drifts toward the poles at approximately 10 to 20 meters per second—almost as fast as it does at lower latitudes. [59] [60]

2026

ISRO and ESA conducted a workshop at IIST in Thiruvanthapuram between 19-23 January 2026 presenting data from Aditya-L1,Proba-3 and Solar Orbiter presenting complementary vantage data points from each mission. [61]

Trajectory

Animation of Solar Orbiter's trajectory
Animation of Solar Orbiter's trajectory - polar view.gif
Polar view. For more detailed animation, see this video
Animation of Solar Orbiter's trajectory - equatorial view.gif
Equatorial view
   Solar Orbiter  ·  Mercury ·  Venus ·  Earth ·  Sun
DateEventDistance from the Sun (AU) / a planet (km) Orbital inclination
Cruise Phase
15 Jun 2020Perihelion #10.527.7°
27 Dec 2020

12:39 UTC

Venus flyby #17,500 [62]
10 Feb 2021Perihelion #20.49
09 Aug 2021

04:42 UTC

Venus flyby #27,995 [63]
12 Sep 2021Perihelion #30.59
27 Nov 2021Earth flyby460 [64]
Nominal Mission Phase
26 Mar 2022Perihelion #40.32
04 Sep 2022

01:26 UTC

Venus flyby #36,000 [65]
12 Oct 2022Perihelion #50.29
10 Apr 2023Perihelion #60.29
07 Oct 2023Perihelion #70.29
04 Apr 2024Perihelion #80.29
30 Sep 2024Perihelion #90.29
18 Feb 2025

20:48 UTC

Venus flyby #4379 [66] 17° [56]
31 Mar 2025Perihelion #100.29
16 Sep 2025Perihelion #110.29
03 Mar 2026Perihelion #120.29
18 Aug 2026Perihelion #130.29
24 Dec 2026

23:04 UTC

Venus flyby #595024°
Extended Mission Phase
06 Feb 2027Perihelion #140.28
06 Jul 2027Perihelion #150.28
03 Dec 2027Perihelion #160.28
18 Mar 2028

08:22 UTC

Venus flyby #635033°
7 May 2028Perihelion #170.33
04 Oct 2028Perihelion #180.33
03 Mar 2029Perihelion #190.33
10 Jun 2029

17:47 UTC

Venus flyby #7350
11 Aug 2029Perihelion #200.37
08 Jan 2030Perihelion #210.37
03 Sep 2030

03:03 UTC

Venus flyby #82650
06 Jun 2030Perihelion #220.37

Source: [67] [10]

The speed of the probe and distance from the Sun Timeline of Solar orbiter.svg
The speed of the probe and distance from the Sun

Results and updates

Since the launch of the mission, a series of papers have been released in three special issues of the Astronomy and Astrophysics Journal:

Meanwhile, regular "science nuggets" (Archived 3 August 2023 at the Wayback Machine ) are released on the Solar Orbiter science community website (Archived 3 August 2023 at the Wayback Machine ).

Solar Orbiter news are regularly updated and listed in the official ESA public pages Archived 29 March 2022 at the Wayback Machine , as well as on the Bluesky Archived 4 March 2025 at the Wayback Machine and Twitter/X account Archived 26 November 2023 at the Wayback Machine . Images taken by the spacecraft with various instruments can be found on the official Flickr account Archived 3 August 2023 at the Wayback Machine .

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "ESA Science & Technology – Spacecraft". sci.esa.int. Archived from the original on 5 April 2020. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  2. ↑ "Solar Orbiter Mission". ESA eoPortal. Archived from the original on 19 June 2019. Retrieved 17 March 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Solar Orbiter factsheet". esa.int. Archived from the original on 8 July 2022. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 "ESA Science & Technology – Instruments". sci.esa.int. Archived from the original on 20 April 2020. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  5. ↑ "Launch Schedule – Spaceflight Now". spaceflightnow.com. Archived from the original on 13 December 2014. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
  6. 1 2 "NASA – NSSDCA – Spacecraft – Details". nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov. Archived from the original on 4 June 2020. Retrieved 10 February 2020.
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  8. ↑ "Kiepenheuer-Institut fuer Sonnenphysik: SolarOrbiter PHI-ISS". Kis.uni-freiburg.de. Archived from the original on 5 April 2020. Retrieved 9 August 2018.
  9. 1 2 "Atlas launches Solar Orbiter mission". SpaceNews. 10 February 2020. Archived from the original on 19 March 2023. Retrieved 30 March 2022.
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  57. ↑ Warmuth, A.; Schuller, F.; Gómez-Herrero, R.; Cernuda, I.; Carcaboso, F.; Mason, G. M.; Dresing, N.; Pacheco, D.; Rodríguez-García, L.; Jarry, M.; Kretzschmar, M.; Barczynski, K.; Shukhobodskaia, D.; Rodriguez, L.; Tan, S. (1 September 2025). "CoSEE-Cat: A Comprehensive Solar Energetic Electron event Catalogue obtained from combined in situ and remote-sensing observations from Solar Orbiter - Catalogue description and first statistical results". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 701: A20. arXiv: 2509.03250 . Bibcode:2025A&A...701A..20W. doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/202554830 . ISSN   0004-6361.
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  62. ↑ "Solar Orbiter prepares for festive Venus flyby". www.esa.int. Archived from the original on 8 November 2024. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
  63. ↑ "ESA gets ready for double Venus flyby". www.esa.int. Archived from the original on 19 June 2023. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
  64. ↑ "Solar Orbiter returns to Earth before starting its main science mission". www.esa.int. Archived from the original on 9 November 2024. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
  65. ↑ "Coronal mass ejection hits Solar Orbiter before Venus flyby". www.esa.int. Archived from the original on 9 November 2024. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
  66. ↑ "Solar Orbiter ready for close encounter with Venus". www.esa.int. Archived from the original on 25 February 2025. Retrieved 28 February 2025.
  67. ↑ "Solar Orbiter perihelia and flybys". www.esa.int. Archived from the original on 8 November 2024. Retrieved 9 November 2024.
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