Solar Orbiter

Solar Orbiter is a space probe developed by the European Space Agency in partnership with NASA, launched in February 2020 to study the Sun and the inner heliosphere from closer than any previous imaging mission, using a series of gravity assist flybys of Venus to gradually raise its orbital inclination. This changing inclination has allowed the spacecraft to capture the first images ever taken of the Sun polar regions, which are difficult to observe from Earth position in the plane of the solar system. Solar Orbiter carries a suite of both remote sensing instruments to image the Sun and in situ instruments to directly sample the solar wind passing the spacecraft.