Highlights from the preparation and liftoff of ESA’s Sun-exploring mission Solar Orbiter. Solar Orbiter lofted to space aboard the US Atlas V 411 rocket from NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s spaceport in Cape Canaveral, Florida at 04:03 GMT (05:03 CET) on 10 February 2020. An ESA-led mission with strong NASA participation, Solar Orbiter carries a set of ten instruments for imaging the surface of the Sun and studying the environment in its vicinity. The spacecraft will trave