The European Space Agency has achieved a landmark in solar science with its Solar Orbiter spacecraft capturing the first-ever close-up images of the Sun’s poles. Released on June 11, 2025, these images mark a major step forward in our understanding of solar activity, particularly the Sun’s mysterious magnetic field behavior at the poles—regions that have long remained out of reach for previous missions.
Solar Orbiter has been studying the Sun since 2021, but a recent maneuver involving a gravitational flyby of Venus allowed the spacecraft to tilt its orbit significantly. This change gave the spacecraft a new viewing angle—up to 17 degrees below the solar equator—enabling it to capture unprecedented images of the Sun’s south pole. Data from its view of the north pole is still on its way to Earth, but the current images already offer valuable insights.
The close-up views were made possible by three of the spacecraft’s ten onboard instruments. The Polarimetric and Helioseismic Imager (PHI) recorded visible light images of the Sun and mapped its surface magnetic field. The Extreme Ultraviolet Imager (EUI) revealed the corona—the million-degree plasma that surrounds the Sun—through ultraviolet imaging. Meanwhile, the SPICE instrument (Spectral Imaging of the Coronal Environment) provided detailed views of the different layers of the Sun’s atmosphere and measured the speeds of solar materials, painting a comprehensive picture of the dynamic solar environment.
The early findings are already significant. Scientists report that the Sun’s magnetic field at the poles is in a chaotic state, with mixed magnetic polarities present. This unusual configuration is typical during the solar maximum, a peak in the Sun’s 11-year activity cycle when its magnetic field is preparing to flip. Understanding how and why this magnetic reversal occurs is vital, as these changes can trigger space weather events that disrupt satellites, communication systems, and power grids on Earth.
What makes this achievement particularly important is that nearly all prior observations of the Sun have been made from the ecliptic plane—the same flat plane in which Earth and the other planets orbit. By tilting its orbit using planetary gravity assists, Solar Orbiter has broken free from this perspective and is now offering humanity its first views of the Sun from above and below.
This is just the beginning. As Solar Orbiter continues to make additional flybys of Venus in the coming years, its orbital tilt will increase, offering even better views of the Sun’s poles. Scientists expect this data to help answer long-standing questions about the Sun’s magnetic cycle, the source of the solar wind, and how solar activity affects the broader solar system.
The mission is already delivering breakthrough science, and the polar images are likely to transform how we understand the structure and behavior of our closest star. With each orbit, Solar Orbiter is bringing us closer to decoding the secrets of the Sun.