Thanks to one of the most productive spacecraft ever built, scientists are far better acquainted with the star that lights our world and gives us life. Built for ESA by European industry, the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO) went into space on 2 December 1995.
More at:
http://www.esa.int/esaSC/SEMC09VLWFE_index_0_ov.html
SOHO Celebrates 20 Years of Discoveries
Originally planned for a two-year mission, the ESA–NASA Solar and Heliospheric Observatory, SOHO, is today celebrating two decades of scientific discovery.
Launched on 2 December 1995, the satellite enjoys an uninterrupted view of our star from some 1.5 million kilometres beyond Earth in the direction of the Sun.
Its numerous mission extensions have allowed it to cover nearly all of two 11-year solar cycles, making it the longest-lived Sun-watching satellite to date.
During its pioneering career it has returned a wealth of new information on the Sun's deep core through to the hot and dynamic outer atmosphere, the solar wind and solar energetic particles.
More from ESA (http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/SOHO_celebrates_20_years_of_discoveries).