ESA's Solar Orbiter Profile picture
Jul 15, 2020 10 tweets 10 min read Read on X
Launched in February, #SolarOrbiter performed its first close approach to the #Sun in mid June, getting just 77 million km from its surface and capturing the closest ever images of our parent star 🌞🛰️📷

These brand new views will be released tomorrow. Stay tuned #TheSunUpClose Image
An international collaboration between ESA and NASA, #SolarOrbiter lofted to space aboard the US Atlas V 411 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida at 05:03 CET on 10 February (23:03 EST on 9 February).

Relive the excitement of the launch:
The mission of #SolarOrbiter: to perform unprecedented close-up observations of the #Sun – including from high latitudes, obtaining views of the Sun's poles – and investigate the Sun-Earth connection.

Find out more about the mysteries it is out to solve: esa.int/Science_Explor… Image
It will take #SolarOrbiter just under 2 years to reach its initial operational orbit, taking advantage of gravity-assist flybys of Earth and Venus. Eventually, the spacecraft will get as close as 42 million km from the #Sun's surface.

Explore the journey:
An international collaboration between ESA and NASA, #SolarOrbiter lofted to space aboard the US Atlas V 411 rocket from Cape Canaveral, Florida at 05:03 CET on 10 February (23:03 EST on 9 February).

Relive the excitement of the launch:
The mission of #SolarOrbiter: to perform unprecedented close-up observations of the #Sun – including from high latitudes, obtaining views of the Sun's poles – and investigate the Sun-Earth connection.

Find out more about the mysteries it is out to solve: esa.int/Science_Explor… Image
It will take #SolarOrbiter just under 2 years to reach its initial operational orbit, taking advantage of gravity-assist flybys of Earth and Venus. Eventually, the spacecraft will get as close as 42 million km from the #Sun's surface.

Explore the journey:
Since launch, #SolarOrbiter has already completed its commissioning phase, making sure that the spacecraft and its suite of 10 instruments are ready for #science.

This phase entailed extra challenges due to the limitations imposed by the current pandemic: esa.int/Science_Explor… Image
Soon after, on 15 June, #SolarOrbiter had its first perihelion – the closest approach to the #Sun along its orbit, 77 million km away. This is closer to the Sun than any other solar telescope has ever been before, and it will get much closer in the future: esa.int/Science_Explor…
These unique views of the #Sun – taken during #SolarOrbiter's first close approach – will be released on 16 July in an online press briefing with mission experts from Europe & the US.

Join us from 08:00 EDT/14:00 CEST
esawebtv.esa.int

Are you ready to see #TheSunUpClose? Image

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ESA's Solar Orbiter Profile picture

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More from @ESASolarOrbiter

Sep 30, 2020
We are excited to announce our first data release! The first data are from in-situ instruments that measure #space conditions around the spacecraft

Read more👉esa.int/Science_Explor…
Dive into the archive👉soar.esac.esa.int/soar/
#OpenESA #WeAreAllSolarOrbiters #SolarOrbiter
For many space missions first data usually comes after 6 months-1 year, but #SolarOrbiter is different: the time between data being received on Earth & it being released is at most 90 days!
#OpenESA #WeAreAllSolarOrbiters
#SolarOrbiter remote sensing instruments will only start nominal operations in Nov ’21, so their data will come later. But we already enjoyed a sneak peek earlier this year:
esa.int/Science_Explor…
#OpenESA #WeAreAllSolarOrbiters
Read 6 tweets
Jul 16, 2020
👋Welcome to the live press briefing with #SolarOrbiter experts presenting the exciting images from the mission captured around its 1st close pass of the #Sun

📨For journalists who have any questions, please send them to media@esa.int

😎Join the conversation via #TheSunUpClose
📷The brand new #SolarOrbiter images that we are going to see today are already the closest ever images of the Sun, captured only 77 million km from our star's surface 👍

#TheSunUpClose

📽️Perihelion animation: esa.int/ESA_Multimedia…
While #SolarOrbiter is taking the closest images of the #Sun, @NASA’s Parker Solar Probe is actually flying much closer. The two missions will work together, collecting complementary data to investigate our nearest star
🛰️🌞🛰️

#TheSunUpClose

Details: esa.int/ESA_Multimedia…
Read 14 tweets
May 29, 2020
Bonus #science opportunity for #SolarOrbiter, which will cross through the tails of #Comet ATLAS in the next few days. The mission's 4 in-situ instruments will be switched on and collecting data during the encounter 👍 #weareallsolarorbiters

More details: esa.int/Science_Explor…
The commissioning of #SolarOrbiter has been proceeding over the past three months to ensure the spacecraft and instruments will be fully functional for the 1st close pass of the #Sun, to take place on 15 June, around 77 million km from our parent star.
Meanwhile, @einionyn noticed that #SolarOrbiter would pass through the ion tail of Comet ATLAS on 31 May-1 June + through the dust tail on 6 June. Fortuitously, the 4 in-situ instruments that measure the conditions around the spacecraft are also great for studying #comet tails! Image
Read 7 tweets
Feb 10, 2020
👋Greetings from ESA's Operations Centre in Darmstadt, Germany! We're getting ready for #SolarOrbiter launch: liftoff is scheduled in less than 30min from @NASAKennedy

Follow live coverage from ESOC & Cape Canaveral via #ESAWebTV
🎥esawebtv.esa.int

#WeAreAllSolarOrbiters
@NASAKennedy The press centre here in Darmstadt is vibrant with #media!

Follow @ESASolarOrbiter & @esaoperations for a detailed countdown to liftoff of #SolarOrbiter and @esascience for exclusive content about the mission science #science from our experts

#WeAreAllSolarOrbiters
Read 32 tweets
Oct 31, 2019
Good morning! ☀️ Our #SolarOrbiter spacecraft is getting ready to leave #Europe on an Antonov cargo plane for its next stage of launch preparations at Cape Canaveral 👋 Here’s one of the last views before packing, taken earlier this month 👇 
More info👉esa.int/Science_Explor… Image
In the meantime, here’s a recap of the latest status and what’s in store for #SolarOrbiter’s mission to the #Sun
📽Watch:
#SolarOrbiter is scheduled for launch Feb 2020 and will use gravity assists at Earth & Venus to get progressively closer & different views of the #Sun 📽 #WeAreAllSolarOrbiters
Read 7 tweets

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