Unveiling the most detailed images ever of the Sun's southern pole, potentially unraveling its hidden secrets
The groundbreaking Solar Orbiter mission, a joint venture between the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA, is shedding new light on our nearest star, the Sun. Recent findings from this mission, launched in 2020, are significantly advancing our understanding of the Sun’s south pole, its magnetic field, and solar storms.
In a historic first, Solar Orbiter has captured the first images of the Sun’s polar regions. In March 2025, the spacecraft tilted its orbit to about 17° below the solar equator, providing a never-before-seen perspective of the Sun's poles [1][2]. Previously, all images of the Sun had been taken from the ecliptic plane, making it impossible to view the poles directly.
Images obtained by the Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager (PHI) aboard Solar Orbiter reveal a **mixed and dynamically complex magnetic field at the Sun’s south pole**. Patches of both positive and negative magnetic polarity were detected, indicating a rich small-scale magnetic structure rather than a simple unipolar field [2]. This complexity emerges near the solar maximum phase when the Sun’s overall magnetic field is flipping and at peak activity.
These observations at the poles are crucial because the Sun’s poles play a key role in the 11-year solar cycle, especially during solar maximum—the phase of maximum solar activity marked by magnetic field reversal. These polar measurements will help illuminate the processes that regulate this cycle, the generation and evolution of the Sun’s magnetic field, and the onset of solar storms such as coronal mass ejections and solar flares, which affect space weather on Earth [2][4].
During its high-latitude phases, Solar Orbiter is also studying the solar wind—streams of charged particles emitted by the Sun—and how turbulence and shock waves propagate through space plasmas. These direct measurements outside the ecliptic plane complement earlier data from Ulysses (a mission between 1990 and 2009) but add high-resolution imaging and combined magnetometry, helping to link solar surface magnetic complexity with space weather phenomena [3].
The mission is designed to last at least seven years, during which the spacecraft will progressively tilt its orbit farther out of the ecliptic plane to improve views of the poles and refine magnetic field mapping. The data sets are expected to transform heliophysics by helping the international scientific community better predict solar activity cycles, understand magnetic field dynamics, and forecast solar storms that can impact satellite operations, communications, and power grids on Earth [1][2][3].
The Sun, being our nearest star and the giver of life, is crucial to understand its behavior to protect modern space and ground power systems. The protective coating, made from crushed animal bones by the Dublin-based company Enbio, plays a vital role in shielding Solar Orbiter from the Sun's intense heat and radiation. Over the coming years, Solar Orbiter will tilt even further out of the ecliptic, reaching 33° above the solar equator, offering new perspectives on the Sun's fiery nature.
Former NASA rocket scientist Aisha Bowe will explain the EU's space ambitions, including the Solar Orbiter mission, at a conference taking place on June 19-20 in Amsterdam. Tickets for the conference are on sale now, with a discount code (our website XMEDIA2025) available for a 30% reduction at the checkout.
References: [1] European Space Agency. (2021). Solar Orbiter. Retrieved from https://www.esa.int/SolarOrbiter [2] European Space Agency. (2021). Solar Orbiter unveils new era of solar science. Retrieved from https://www.esa.int/SolarOrbiter/News/Solar_Orbiter_unveils_new_era_of_solar_science [3] European Space Agency. (2021). Solar Orbiter's first images of the Sun's poles. Retrieved from https://www.esa.int/SolarOrbiter/News/Solar_Orbiter_s_first_images_of_the_Sun_s_poles [4] European Space Agency. (2021). Solar Orbiter reveals complex magnetic field structure at the Sun’s south pole. Retrieved from https://www.esa.int/SolarOrbiter/News/Solar_Orbiter_reveals_complex_magnetic_field_structure_at_the_Sun_s_south_pole
- The groundbreaking Solar Orbiter mission, in collaboration with technology, is providing unprecedented insights into the Sun's space-and-astronomy, such as the mixed and dynamically complex magnetic field at the Sun’s south pole.
- Advancements in science, particularly in space-and-astronomy, are being fueled by the Solar Orbiter mission's technology, as it studies the complex magnetic field at the Sun’s poles and works towards a better understanding of solar storms and the 11-year solar cycle.
