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THE Solar and Helio- spheric Observatory (SOHO) satellite completed its ten years in space in December 2005. SOHO has been generating valuable information and constantly furnishing data to the relevant authorities for the past one decade.

The main purpose of SOHO's launch was to observe the Sun more closely. This project was jointly planned and initiated by NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) of the US and the European Space Agency (ESA).

Although SOHO was launched in early December 1995, it began operating in May 1996. The programme was initially designed for a two-year duration, but after its initial success the authorities decided to extend it until 2003. In 2002, the mission was further extended and now it is to continue its operations until March of 2007.

SOHO is a sophisticated composition of twelve instruments jointly developed by the American and European scientists. To enable its prompt and successful launch, a number of teams of engineers and scientists from many countries joined hands. They also provided support during its operations and in analysing the data sent by it.

The SOHO spacecraft was developed in Europe. A team mainly headed by Matra Marconi Space (MMS) was given the job of designing the craft. MMS is Europe's largest producer of spacecraft. It is a joint venture company with professionals from France and the UK. Both European and American scientists assisted in furnishing the requisite instruments.

The spacecraft comprises two main components. The lower portion is called service module and the upper part is called payload module.

The service module is a box-shaped structure, made up of aluminum panels attached to a corrugated aluminum cylinder by four shear webs. The data handling, communications, altitude and orbit control, and power subsystems are linked using the four lateral panels. The box's upper floor includes the propulsion subsystem, tank and thruster masts. The high-gain antenna is coupled into the rear part of the central cylinder.

The payload module includes all the scientific instruments that the system possesses. This module furnishes an optical work surface for the experiments and is made up of four upper lateral panels and a top panel linked to a central cylinder by a number of shear webs. The bottom division includes three lower lateral panels, each connected to the central cylindrical tube by a number of shear webs and floors.

Instruments

The SOHO spacecraft has twelve built-in instruments each of which is capable

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