SOHO Mission
Mission Details
Launch Date:
December 2, 1995
Rocket Used:
Atlas IIAS (AC-121)
Launched From:
Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, USA
Destination:
Halo orbit around the Sun-Earth L1 Lagrange point (approximately 1.5 million km sunward from Earth, providing continuous solar viewing)
References
Mission Description
In the Orbital Mechanics app, the SOHO (Solar and Heliospheric Observatory) mission simulates a launch from Earth to the Sun-Earth L1 Lagrange point, building on Restricted 3-Body dynamics and real solar observation history.
Key achievements: Revolutionized helioseismology (revealing Sun’s internal plasma flows and faster-rotating core), traced solar wind origins, advanced space weather forecasting, and unexpectedly discovered over 5,200 comets (most by any observatory, many via citizen scientists).
Survived near-loss in 1998; still operational as of late 2025, spanning three solar cycles and inspiring successors like Solar Orbiter.
Main Components:
SOHO carries 12 scientific instruments organized into four categories:
-
Helioseismology:
- GOLF (Global Oscillations at Low Frequencies)
- VIRGO (Variability of Solar Irradiance and Gravity Oscillations)
- MDI/SOI (Michelson Doppler Imager / Solar Oscillations Investigation)
-
Coronal diagnostics:
- CDS (Coronal Diagnostic Spectrometer)
- EIT (Extreme Ultraviolet Imaging Telescope)
- SUMER (Solar Ultraviolet Measurements of Emitted Radiation)
- UVCS (Ultraviolet Coronagraph Spectrometer)
- LASCO (Large Angle and Spectrometric Coronagraph)
-
In-situ particle measurements:
- CELIAS (Charge, Element, and Isotope Analysis System)
- COSTEP (Comprehensive Suprathermal and Energetic Particle Analyzer)
- ERNE (Energetic and Relativistic Nuclei and Electron experiment)
-
Solar wind mapping:
- SWAN (Solar Wind Anisotropies)
One response to “Orbital Mechanics V50.7.2 Claude Svelte RWD”
[…] Orbital Mechanics V50.7.2 Claude Svelte RWD (Increased Zoom Resolution) […]