Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                              2020 February 11

                         Launch of the Solar Orbiter
     Image Credit & Copyright: Derek Demeter (Emil Buehler Planetarium)

   Explanation: How does weather on the Sun affect humanity? To help find
   out, the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA have just launched the
   Solar Orbiter. This Sun-circling robotic spaceship will monitor the
   Sun's changing light, solar wind, and magnetic field not only from the
   usual perspective of Earth but also from above and below the Sun.
   Pictured, a long duration exposure of the launch of the Solar Orbiter
   shows the graceful arc of the bright engines of United Launch
   Alliance's Atlas V rocket as they lifted the satellite off the Earth.
   Over the next few years, the Solar Orbiter will use the gravity of
   Earth and Venus to veer out of the plane of the planets and closer to
   the Sun than Mercury. Violent weather on the Sun, including solar
   flares and coronal mass ejections, has shown the ability to interfere
   with power grids on the Earth and communications satellites in Earth
   orbit. The Solar Orbiter is expected to coordinate observations with
   the also Sun-orbiting Parker Solar Probe launched in 2018.

                  Solar Orbiter to Space: Watch the Launch
                       Tomorrow's picture: sky divide
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       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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                      A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC
                             & Michigan Tech. U.

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