SOHO
The Sun will be monitored from afar with the 1995 launch of ESA's Solar Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO). Placed in a halo orbit about the L1 libration point (between the Earth and the Sun), SOHO will conduct a 3-part program of helioseismology, solar atmosphere remote sensing, and in situ solar wind observatons as ESA's second half of the STSP. In cooperation with NASA, SOHO will be launched by an Atlas-Centaur booster.
A contractor team led by Matra Marconi was hard at work during 1993-1994 testing and integrating the spacecraft. With an initial mass of 1,850 kg, SOHO is 3.65 m in diameter and 3.8 m tall with a solar array span of 9.5 m. The 3-axis stabilized spacecraft will carry a 610-kg payload of 12 major instruments: three for helioseismology (GOLF, VIRGO, and MDI/SOI), six for solar atmosphere observations (SUPER, CDS, KIT, UVCS, LASCO, and SWAN), and three for solar wind measurements (CELIAS, COSTEP, and ERNE), The design lifetime is two years with reserves available for up to four additional years (References 92-96).
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