SWA PAS and EAS low latency data downloaded during todays pass. Unfortunately HIS not on (missing panels in the middle). Solar wind speed ~600 km/s for strong southward field period, so could indeed be geoeffective if it passes Earth in the next few hours.

We submitted this proposal for @ESASolarOrbiter on Jan 10th 2008 (my birthday!). Today at 1025 BST we achieved the milestone of operating all 3 SWA sensors together in science mode for the first time, somewhere out there inside the orbit of Venus!

Extremely pleased and excited to report that the SWA HIS team have just achieved ‘first light’ for the sensor. All 3 of the SWA scientific sensors have now successfully made measurements of the solar wind passing the ⁦@ESASolarOrbiter⁩ spacecraft. Congrats to the team!

Winding down from very busy week for SWA on @ESASolarOrbiter. Got our 1st measurements of solar wind protons from the PAS sensor on Weds, and first electrons from EAS on Thurs. Still much tweaking to do to be ready for science mode proper in a few weeks. HIS sensor next week.

Big day as we resume SWA/EAS commissioning for ⁦@ESASolarOrbiter⁩. Aiming to get the 2kV to the MCPs up and running today and tomorrow. A few members of the team allowed access to ⁦@MSSLSpaceLab⁩, but yours truly taking part through a setup in my sons nursery!

At my desk for our early attempts to commission ⁦@ESASolarOrbiter⁩ SWA-EAS sensor remote from ESOC. Only low-risk stuff today, monitoring ESOC screens via webcam! @UCL on lockdown from Friday, so need to work out how to do high risk HV stuff from our homes from next week!

So bizarrely several people claim not to get my reply to this tweet - so in a bit of downtime I have done the work suggested!

Ready for tonight!

Up close to the Atlas rocket that will be carrying our SWA instruments into space tonight.

Terrible picture from my iPhone, but rocket carrying the ⁦@ESASolarOrbiter⁩ spacecraft is on its way out to the launch pad as I am on the tour of ⁦@ExploreSpaceKSC⁩