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Moving to the rhythm of the Sun

17 August 2007

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This artist's impression shows the ESA/NASA Ulysses spacecraft. Launched in 1990, the European-built spacecraft visits both polar regions once every 6.2 years as it circles the Sun in an orbit that is almost perpendicular to the ecliptic, the plane in which Earth and the planets move.

Credits: ESA

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Ulysses is a joint ESA/NASA mission studying the interplanetary medium and solar wind in the inner heliosphere, beyond the Sun's equator, for the first time.

The spacecraft's high-inclination orbit around the Sun took it over the solar south pole in 1994 and then the north pole in 1995. Ulysses then made a second southern solar pass above 70º South during September 2000 to January 2001, and a similar northern pass during September to December 2001. On 17 November 2006, the spacecraft started its third passage over the Sun's south pole.

Ulysses' high-gain antenna points continuously towards Earth, returning data for eight hours every day as it investigates the Sun's domain.

[94.07.010-001]

Credits: JPL/ESA

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This composite image shows a SOHO image of the Sun and an artist's impression of Earth's magnetosphere.

Credits: Magnetosphere: NASA, the Sun: ESA/NASA - SOHO

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