New Delhi, June 12 -- For the first time in history, scientists have captured direct images of the Sun's north and south poles, thanks to the European Space Agency-led Solar Orbiter mission. By tilting its orbit 17 degrees out of the ecliptic plane - the flat plane in which Earth and most planets orbit - Solar Orbiter has provided humanity with a rare and valuable new view of our nearest star.

"Today we reveal humankind's first-ever views of the Sun's pole," said Prof Carole Mundell, ESA's Director of Science. "These new unique views from our Solar Orbiter mission are the beginning of a new era of solar science."

Until now, all solar imagery has come from the equatorial perspective. The poles - critical to understanding the Sun's magnet...