Dear colleagues,

We invite abstracts for the session “Solar Orbiter mission – How does the Sun create and control the heliosphere?” (SP4) that will take place during the 2012 National Astronomy Meeting in Manchester on 27-30 March.

In October 2011, Solar Orbiter was selected as ESA’s Cosmic Vision Medium Class mission for launch in 2017. The spacecraft will travel closer to the Sun than any previous solar mission, reaching 0.28 AU at perihelion. The inclination of its elliptical orbit will increase up to 30 degrees latitude to provide, for the first time, a clear view of Sun’s polar regions. Solar Orbiter will measure the solar wind plasma, fields, waves and energetic particles close to the Sun and provide the first detailed link between the solar wind and magnetic fields measured at the location of the spacecraft and their origins on the Sun.

The mission represents a unique opportunity for members of both the Solar Physics and STP communities to come together to capitalise on the science of Solar Orbiter.

We welcome oral and poster presentations from the MIST, UKSP and broader astrophysical communities concerning current observational, experimental and theoretical studies which relate to the science goals of Solar Orbiter and the scientific preparation for the mission. Contributions describing other missions and instrumentation that will provide related measurements during the Solar Orbiter era are also welcome. We especially encourage participation from those parts of the community which have to date not been directly involved in the project preparations.

Meeting registration and abstract submission are now open on the NAM website: http://www.jodrellbank.manchester.ac.uk/meetings/nam2012/

The abstract submission deadline is 3 February and the Solar Orbiter session is scheduled for the morning of Wednesday 28 March.

Best regards,

Andrzej Fludra (STFC/RAL), Louise Harra (UCL/MSSL), Tim Horbury (Imperial College), Chris Owen (UCL/MSSL)