Vigil (space mission)
| Names | Formerly known as Lagrange |
|---|---|
| Mission type | Space Weather nowcast, forecast |
| Operator | European Space Agency |
| COSPAR ID | TBD |
| SATCAT no. | TBD |
| Website | https://www.esa.int/Space_Safety/Vigil |
| Mission duration | Cruise phase: 3 years
Operations: 4.5 years Extension: 5 years Designed operational life span: 20+ years |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Launch mass | 2,500 kg (limit) |
| Dry mass | ~1,100 kg |
| Payload mass | ~150 kg (before system margins) |
| Power | Spacecraft ~1000 W; Payload ~200 W |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | Q3 2031 (planned) |
| Rocket | Ariane 62 |
| Launch site | Guiana Space Centre |
| Contractor | Arianespace |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Sun-Earth L5 |
| Regime | Lissajous orbit |
Vigil, formerly known as Lagrange, is a future space weather mission under development by the European Space Agency (ESA). The mission will provide the ESA Space Weather Office with instruments able to monitor the Sun, its solar corona, and interplanetary medium between the Sun and Earth, to provide early warnings of increased solar activity, to identify and mitigate potential threats to society and infrastructure, as well as to allow 4 to 5 days space weather forecasts. To this purpose the Vigil mission will place for the first time a spacecraft at Sun-Earth Lagrange point 5 (L5) from where it would get a 'side' view of the Sun, observing regions of solar activity on the solar surface before they turn and face Earth.