Solar Orbiter
Mission overview
Solar Orbiter is an ESA–NASA mission imaging the Sun from close range and viewing its poles for the first time.
Mission data
Identity and engineering data from Wikidata (type-verified match · Q653731) · launch date 2020-02-10 confirmed
| International designator | 2020-010A | Wikidata · catalogued |
| Manufacturer | Airbus Defence and Space | Wikidata · catalogued |
Full field-level provenance
- International designator: Wikidata (Wikimedia Foundation) — community-curated structured knowledge base · Wikidata · wdt · P247 · catalogued value · retrieved 2026-07-11
- Manufacturer: Wikidata (Wikimedia Foundation) — community-curated structured knowledge base · Wikidata · wdt · P176 · catalogued value · retrieved 2026-07-11
Sourced from Wikidata (community-maintained structured data, whose statements link to their own citations where provided); each value carries its Wikidata QID. A field with conflicting Wikidata values is omitted. Launch date is used only to cross-check the catalogue, never to override it. Fields Wikidata did not provide, or where conflicting values exist, are omitted, never invented.
Derived values
Computed from source-backed inputs via standard formulae — not observations. Every input and constant is traced below.
- Time since launch6.4 yearscalculated
Formula & inputs
Formula: Δt = reference − launch (v1.0.0, impl v1.0.0)
Inputs:
- launchDate = 18302 days (JD-like) · ESA
Limitations: A time-dependent value: it is elapsed time as of the stated reference instant, not a fixed total.; Elapsed time since launch is not the same as time spent operating at the target.
Uncertainty: not propagated (inputs carry no catalogued uncertainty)
Computed as of 2026-06-29.
Outcome & discoveries
Returned the closest images of the Sun and first views toward the solar poles.
- ★Ubiquitous small-scale 'campfire' flares in the solar corona
Mission profile
Knowledge connections
- Target ofThe Sun
- Operated byESA
- Operated byNASA
- Mission targetThe Sun
- ObservesSolar Wind
- Associated withActive Regions
- Associated withThe Coronal Heating Problem
Related missions
| Mission | Type | Agency | Launch | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BepiColomboMercury | Orbiter | ESA | 2018-10-20 | En route |
| Venus ExpressVenus | Orbiter | ESA | 2005-11-09 | Completed |
| Mars ExpressMars | Orbiter | ESA | 2003-06-02 | Active |
| JUICE (Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer)Jupiter and its icy moons | Orbiter | ESA | 2023-04-14 | En route |
| RosettaComet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko | Orbiter and lander | ESA | 2004-03-02 | Completed |
| GaiaSun–Earth L2 | Astrometry observatory | ESA | 2013-12-19 | Completed |
Sources
The primary and reference sources this topic draws on.
- ESAEuropean Space Agency
European missions, observatories, and space science imagery.