Unveiling the Moon-Enabled Sun Occultation Mission (MESOM)

Imagine witnessing not just one, but around 80 total solar eclipses in the vastness of space! That's the ambitious goal of a groundbreaking U.K.-led mission called the Moon-Enabled Sun Occultation Mission (MESOM). Set to revolutionize our understanding of the sun’s outer atmosphere, this mission was announced at the Royal Astronomical Society’s National Astronomy Meeting 2025.

Timing is Everything: Aligning with Solar Eclipses in Space

The MESOM mission, pending approval from the European Space Agency (ESA), aims to launch by 2026-28 at an estimated cost of $240 million. Unlike traditional eclipses that last mere minutes, MESOM will strategically align with the moon's shadow every lunar month, creating incredible in-space eclipses that could last up to 48 minutes!

Unlocking the Secrets of the Solar Corona!

These extended eclipses will provide scientists with clearer, longer views of the sun’s elusive corona, the source of powerful solar flares and storms. Currently, on Earth, we can only glimpse the corona during a total solar eclipse, and even then, only for a few fleeting moments.

Cutting-Edge Technology on Board MESOM

Equipped with a state-of-the-art telescope from the US Naval Research Lab, a spectrometer from Aberystwyth & UCL, and a spectropolarimeter from Spain, MESOM is designed to analyze coronal plasma and magnetic fields, bringing us closer to understanding solar phenomena.

A Leap Beyond Current Missions