THE SOLAR-B MISSION

The Solar-B is the third Japanese spacecraft dedicated for solar physics to be launched in summer of 2006. The spacecraft carries a coordinated set of optical, EUV and X-ray instruments that will allow a systematic study of the interaction between the Sun's magnetic field and its high temperature, ionized atmosphere. The Solar Optical Telescope (SOT) consists of a 50cm aperture diffraction limited Gregorian telescope and a focal plane package, and provides quantitative measurements of full vector magnetic fields at the photosphere with spatial resolution of 0.2-0.3 arcsec in a condition free from terrestrial atmospheric seeing. The X-ray telescope (XRT) images the high temperature (0.5 to 10 MK) corona with improved spatial resolution of approximately 1 arcsec. The Extreme Ultraviolet Imaging Spectrometer (EIS) aims to determine velocity fields and other plasma parameters in the corona and the transition region. The Solar-B telescopes, as a whole, will enable us to explore the origins of the outer solar atmosphere, the corona, and the coupling between the fine magnetic structure at the photosphere and the dynamic processes occurring in the corona. The mission instruments (SOT/EIS/XRT) are joint effort of Japan (JAXA/NAO), the United States (NASA), and the United Kingdom (PPARC). An overview of the spacecraft and its mission instruments are presented.