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United Launch Alliance (ULA) is a joint venture of Lockheed Martin Space Systems and Boeing Defense, Space & Security. ULA was formed in December 2006 by combining the teams at these companies which provide spacecraft launch services to the government of the United States. ULA launches from both coasts of the US. They launch their Atlas V vehicle from LC-41 in Cape Canaveral and LC-3E at Vandeberg. Their Delta IV launches from LC-37 at Cape Canaveral and LC-6 at Vandenberg.
Solar Orbiter is a joint ESA/NASA mission dedicated to solar and heliospheric physics. It will be used to examine how the Sun creates and controls the heliosphere, the vast bubble of charged particles blown by the solar wind into the interstellar medium. The spacecraft will combine in situ and remote sensing observations to gain new information about the solar wind, the heliospheric magnetic field, solar energetic particles, transient interplanetary disturbances and the Sun's magnetic field. Instruments include: * Solar Wind Analyser (SWA) * Energetic Particle Detector (EPD) * Magnetometer (MAG) * Radio and Plasma Wave analyser (RPW) * Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager (PHI) * Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI) * Spectral Imaging of the Coronal Environment (SPICE) * Spectrometer Telescope for Imaging X-rays (STIX) * Coronagraph (Metis) While mission is not intended to get as close to the Sun as Parker Solar Probe, it's designed to coordinate observations and has different set of instruments. Main mission starts after one and only Earth flyby in November 2021, and lasts until Dec 2026 when it enters extended phase. During the mission, Solar Orbiter will get through numerous Venus gravity assists, and its trajectory will be highly inclined allowing direct observations of Sun's poles.
Height 58.30 Meters
Max Stages 2
Mass To GTO 5950 kg
Liftoff Thrust 0 kN
Diameter 3.80 Meters
Mass To LEO 8080 kg
Liftoff Mass 0 Tonnes
Launch Success 6
Consecutive Success 6
Maiden Flight 2006-04-20
Launch Failures 0
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Solar Orbiter, a partnership between ESA and NASA, will perform a gravity assist maneuver with Venus on September 2, 2030. Throughout its mission it also makes repeated gravity assist flybys of Venus to get closer to the Sun, and to change its orbital inclination, boosting it out of the ecliptic plane, to get the best – and first – views of the Sun’s poles.
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Solar Orbiter, a partnership between ESA and NASA, will perform a gravity assist maneuver with Venus on June 10, 2029. Throughout its mission it also makes repeated gravity assist flybys of Venus to get closer to the Sun, and to change its orbital inclination, boosting it out of the ecliptic plane, to get the best – and first – views of the Sun’s poles.
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Solar Orbiter, a partnership between ESA and NASA, will perform a gravity assist maneuver with Venus on March 17, 2028. Throughout its mission it also makes repeated gravity assist flybys of Venus to get closer to the Sun, and to change its orbital inclination, boosting it out of the ecliptic plane, to get the best – and first – views of the Sun’s poles.
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Solar Orbiter, a partnership between ESA and NASA, will perform a gravity assist maneuver with Venus on December 24, 2026. Throughout its mission it also makes repeated gravity assist flybys of Venus to get closer to the Sun, and to change its orbital inclination, boosting it out of the ecliptic plane, to get the best – and first – views of the Sun’s poles.
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Solar Orbiter, a partnership between ESA and NASA, will perform a gravity assist maneuver with Venus on February 18, 2025. Throughout its mission it also makes repeated gravity assist flybys of Venus to get closer to the Sun, and to change its orbital inclination, boosting it out of the ecliptic plane, to get the best – and first – views of the Sun’s poles.
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Solar Orbiter, a partnership between ESA and NASA, will perform a gravity assist maneuver with Venus with its closest approach at a distance of 6400 km. Throughout its mission it also makes repeated gravity assist flybys of Venus to get closer to the Sun, and to change its orbital inclination, boosting it out of the ecliptic plane, to get the best – and first – views of the Sun’s poles.
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Solar Orbiter, a partnership between ESA and NASA, will perform a gravity assist maneuver with Earth on November 27. Throughout its mission it also makes repeated gravity assist flybys of Venus to get closer to the Sun, and to change its orbital inclination, boosting it out of the ecliptic plane, to get the best – and first – views of the Sun’s poles.
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Solar Orbiter, a partnership between ESA and NASA, flew by Venus on 9 August with a closest approach of 7995 km at 04:42 UTC. Throughout its mission it makes repeated gravity assist flybys of Venus to get closer to the Sun, and to change its orbital inclination, boosting it out of the ecliptic plane, to get the best – and first – views of the Sun’s poles.
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Solar Orbiter, a partnership between ESA and NASA, flew by Venus on 27 December with a closest approach of 7500 km at 12:39 UTC. Throughout its mission it makes repeated gravity assist flybys of Venus to get closer to the Sun, and to change its orbital inclination, boosting it out of the ecliptic plane, to get the best – and first – views of the Sun’s poles.
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