← Back to missions

Official Solar Orbiter patch

Space probes·ESA / NASA

Solar Orbiter

ActiveLaunched in 2020·Heliocentric orbit 0.28 AU

An ESA/NASA heliophysics mission: the first high-resolution images of the Sun's poles from a tilted orbit.

Main objectives

Image the solar poles, never before seen at high resolution.
Link polar magnetic activity to eruptions toward Earth.
Measure particles, fields and plasma from a tilted orbit.

Did you know?

Combines 10 instruments including 6 telescopes: the most complete suite ever sent to the Sun.

Timeline

Feb 10, 2020

Launch

Atlas V from Cape Canaveral.

Mar 26, 2022

Perihelion 0.32 AU

First close solar pass.

Mar 01, 2025

Solar poles

First tilt out of the ecliptic (17°).

Instruments

[03]

EUI

Extreme ultraviolet imager.

PHI

Polarimetric and helioseismic imager.

METIS

Coronagraph.

Specifications

Mass1,800 kg

Shield324 kg, 520 °C max

Inclinationup to 33°

Discoveries

[05]

Iconic imageBreakthrough
First images of the solar poles
Orbital inclination at 17°: unprecedented view of the polar regions off the ecliptic plane.
Mar 26, 2025 ↗
MeasurementMajor
Origin of the slow solar wind mapped
EUI and SoloHI identify the magnetic structures at the origin of the slow solar wind at the edge of coronal holes.
Sep 23, 2025 ↗
ObservationMajor
First close-up images of the Sun
Detection of miniature "campfire" eruptions in the solar corona in EUV.
Mar 26, 2022
MilestoneNotable
Solar poles
First tilt out of the ecliptic (17°).
Mar 01, 2025
Iconic imageMajor
Launch
Atlas V from Cape Canaveral.
Feb 10, 2020

Mission milestones

[01]

Milestone
Perihelion 0.32 AU
First close solar pass.
Mar 26, 2022

Official sources

ESA Solar Orbiter↗