National Aeronautics and Space Administration

Marshall Space Flight Center

Hinode (Solar-B)

Hinode (Solar-B)

News Archive - Pre-launch

2006 Sep 12:

EIS News: Probing The Most Energetic Explosions In The Solar System

2006 Sep 9:

EIS News: Probe to study mighty explosions

2006 Sep:

Hinode Science Center News: Opportunities for scientists

2006 Aug 1:

On July 30, the Solar-B spacecraft left ISAS' building C in Sagamihara and arrived at the Uchinoura Space Center in the early morning of August 1. Throughout August, the spacecraft will undergo post-shipment checks and tests of launch-site/spacecraft systems and operations.

2006 Jul 26:

NAOJ Solar-B Homepage: Under approval of the Space Activity Commission, JAXA announced the official Solar-B launch schedule at 16:00 JST. Solar-B is scheduled for launch on 2006 September 23, 06:00-07:00 JST (September 22, 21:00-22:00 UT) on a M-V-7 rocket. A backup launch window extends from September 24-30.

2006 Jun 25-30:

Solar Physics Division of the AAS 2006 Meeting:

The Solar Physics Division of the American Astronomical Society held its 37th meeting on the campus of the University of New Hampshire in Durham. Topics of discussion included the solar wind and heliosphere, the active corona, coronal magnetic fields, the chromosphere, solar eruptions and conditions, the solar interior, the magnetic photosphere, and a special session on Solar-B. The special session included: an Overview of the Solar-B Mission by Dr. John Davis, a discussion of The Focal Plane Package of the Solar Optical Telescope on Solar-B by Dr. Theodore Tarbell, a description of The X-ray Telescope for Solar-B by Dr. Edward DeLuca, and a survey of The Extreme Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrometer (EIS) on Solar-B by George A. Doschek.

2005 Nov 15:

Solar-B/STEREO Science Planning Workshop:

This meeting was focused on science planning for the STEREO and Solar-B missions, which will both be launched in 2006. The purpose of the conference was to discuss the possibility of complementary science operations and data analysis and interpretation activities in order to maximize the science outputs from these missions. Discussion on how to make mutually productive partnerships, both with coexisting solar and heliospheric missions including SOHO, ACE, WIND, and Ulysses, with ground based solar observatories, especially those including magnetographs, and with overlapping activities and campaigns such as VSO, VHO and IHY, will also be a primary goal. (Turtle Bay, Oahu, Hawaii)

2005 Nov 8-11:

Sixth Solar-B Science Meeting:

The sixth Solar-B science meeting was organized by Kwasan and Hida Observatories of Kyoto University and sponsored by a Grant-in-Aid for the 21st Century COE "Center for Diversity and Universality in Physics", Yukawa Institute for Theoretical Physics of Kyoto University, and Solar Terrestrial Environment Laboratory of Nagoya University. The main objective of the meeting was to discuss science objectives and programs to sponsor observing programs. (Kyoto, Japan)

2005 Nov:

Hinode Science Center News: The 6th Solar-B Science Meeting

2005 Sep:

Hinode Science Center News: Hinode Science Center at NAOJ

2001 Dec 14:

Yohkoh (Solar-A) suffered a spacecraft failure that put an end to this mission. During the solar eclipse of December 14th the spacecraft lost pointing. Since the spacecraft operators were unable to command the satellite to point toward the sun, the batteries discharged.

2001 Apr 3:

Beyond Solar-B, The Marshall Space Flight Center Solar Physics Symposium:

The MSFC solar physics group was active in the definition and promotion of the Japan/US/UK Solar-B Mission. Now that Solar-B is "under construction" it is time to begin to think about the science problems that the next high-resolution magnetography mission should address. The Huntsville solar group, with the encouragement of NASA Headquarters, undertook the initiative to organize a Workshop that brought together solar scientists who represent this segment of the solar physics community.

Our chief aim was to reach consensus on the main science goals for space-based high-resolution solar magnetography beyond 2010. This process was begun by NASA's Sun-Earth Connection Roadmap exercise last year, but much more needs to be done. The topic needed to be revisited in light of NASA's new initiative, Living With a Star (LWS), and in light of the Advanced Technology Solar Telescope (ATST) being spearheaded by NSO. The title of the Workshop was High-Resolution Solar Magnetography from Space: Beyond Solar-B.

"The focus was on the interplay between solar convection and the magnetic field in and near the photosphere. The basic purpose was to identify (1) the science problems that will likely remain unsolved at the end of the decade, and (2) the improvements in high-resolution measurements of magnetic fields and magnetoconvection that are needed to open inroads into these problems. The purpose of the Workshop was not to define the next high-resolution solar magnetography mission, but rather to define the scientific questions that such a mission will have to address. Thus the outcome of the Workshop lays the foundation for the mission study, which will come later."