A rocket carrying Solar Orbiter—a probe that aims to take pictures of the north and south poles of the sun—successfully launched from Cape Canaveral, in a joint mission with NASA and the European Space Agency.
In this photo provided by NASA, United Launch Alliance's Atlas V rocket, lifts off from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in in Cape Canaveral, Fla., Sunday, Feb. 9, 2020. European Space Agency and NASA's Solar Orbiter rocketed into space Sunday night on an unprecedented mission to capture the first pictures of the sun's elusive poles.
The $1.5 billion spacecraft will join NASA's Parker Solar Probe, launched 1 1/2 years ago, in coming perilously close to the sun to unveil its secrets. Solar Orbiter was made in Europe, along with nine science instruments. NASA provided the 10th instrument and arranged the late-night launch from Cape Canaveral.
At its closest approach, Solar Orbiter will come within 26 million miles of the sun, well within the orbit of Mercury. Solar Orbiter's head-on views should finally yield a full 3-D view of the sun, 93 million miles from our home planet. Embedded in the heat shield are five peepholes of varying sizes that will stay open just long enough for the science instruments to take measurements in X-ray, ultraviolet, visible and other wavelengths.
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