Solar Orbiter, a new collaborative mission between the ESA (European Space Agency) and NASA to study the Sun, launched at 11:03 p.m. EST February 9 on a United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket from Launch Complex 41 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida.

In the first two days after launch, Solar Orbiter was slated to deploy its instrument boom and several antennas that will communicate with Earth and gather scientific data.  Solar Orbiter is on a unique trajectory that will allow its comprehensive set of instruments to provide humanity with the first-ever images of the Sun's poles.  This trajectory includes 22 close approaches to the Sun, bringing the spacecraft within the orbit of Mercury to study the Sun and its influence on space.