On February 9, 2020, the European Space Agency’s Solar Orbiter spacecraft launched from Cape Canaveral Florida on top of an Atlas V 411 spacecraft. The spacecraft’s mission is to fly inside the orbit of Mercury, on a tilted orbit that takes it above and below the Sun, capturing images of the Sun’s poles for the first time. This is just a year and a half after the launch of NASA’s Parker Solar Probe, which will fly even closer. Our Book is out! https://www.amazon.com/Universe-Today-Ultimate-Viewing-Cosmos/dp/1624145442/Audio Podcast version:ITunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/universe-today-guide-to-space-audio/id794058155?mt=2RSS: https://www.universetoday.com/audioWeekly email newsletter:https://www.universetoday.com/newsletterWeekly Space Hangout:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC0-KklSGlCiJDwOPdR2EUcg/Astronomy Cast:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUHI67dh9jEO2rvK--MdCSgSupport us at https://www.patreon.com/universetodayMore stories at https://www.universetoday.com/Twitch: https://twitch.tv/fcainTwitter: https://twitter.com/universetodayFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/universetodayInstagram - https://instagram.com/universetodayTeam: Fraser Cain - @fcain / [email protected]Karla Thompson - @karlaii / https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCEItkORQYd4Wf0TpgYI_1fwChad Weber - [email protected]References:https://sci.esa.int/web/solar-orbiter/-/liftoff-for-solar-orbiter-esa-s-mission-to-face-the-sun-up-closehttps://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Solar_Orbiterhttp://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Videos/2019/10/Solar_Orbiter_s_journey_around_the_Sunhttp://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/Ulysses_overviewhttps://solarsystem.nasa.gov/missions/ulysses/in-depth/https://www.nasa.gov/content/solar-orbiter-overviewhttps://sci.esa.int/web/solar-orbiter/-/51169-what-drives-the-solar-wind-and-where-does-the-coronal-magnetic-field-originate-fromhttps://sci.esa.int/web/solar-orbiter/-/51170-how-do-solar-transients-drive-heliospheric-variabilityhttps://sci.esa.int/web/solar-orbiter/-/51171-how-do-solar-eruptions-produce-energetic-particle-radiation-that-fills-the-heliospherehttps://sci.esa.int/web/solar-orbiter/-/51172-how-does-the-solar-dynamo-work-and-drive-connections-between-the-sun-and-the-heliospherehttps://sci.esa.int/web/solar-orbiter/-/51217-instrumentshttp://parkersolarprobe.jhuapl.edu/The-Mission/index.phphttps://www.eso.org/public/outreach/eduoff/vt-2004/mt-2003/mt-mercury-orbit.htmlhttps://www.esa.int/Enabling_Support/Space_Engineering_Technology/Paint_it_black_Stone_Age_sunscreen_for_Solar_Orbiterhttps://www.esa.int/Enabling_Support/Space_Engineering_Technology/Solar_Orbiter_s_shield_takes_Sun_s_heat