Solar Orbiter: Mission status and science highlights

This presentation will provide a status update of the ESA/NASA Solar Orbiter mission and summarise recent science highlights.

Solar Orbiter has been acquiring unique data from as close as 0.29 au solar distance since 2022, combining in situ measurements close to the Sun with simultaneous high-resolution solar imaging and spectroscopic observations. These multi-instrument data have enabled the science community to address fundamental solar physics questions, including determining the linkage between observed solar wind streams and their source regions on the Sun. Solar Orbiter’s science return is significantly enhanced by coordinated observations with other space missions, as well as ground-based telescopes.

In 2025, Solar Orbiter’s out-of-ecliptic mission phase started, acquiring first detailed observations of the Sun’s unexplored polar regions from 17° heliolatitude. During its proposed mission extension, Solar Orbiter will successively increase its maximal inclination to 24° in January 2027, 30° in April 2028 and 33° from July 2029 onwards. This phase is opening a new frontier in solar physics, with the prospect of revolutionising our understanding of magnetic flux transport and the solar dynamo.