Template talk:Solar System probes

Geocentric Solar telescopes

The template currently includesSolar Dynamics Observatory,which is ageocentricheliophysics mission. All other spacecrafts listed in the Solar science section are either inheliocentric orbitor atLagrangian points.If we include SDO, the other Earth-based sun observing satellites likeIRISandHinode,must all be added. Not to forget Earth orbiting planetary telescopes such asHisaki,and theHubble(as it has conducted numerous observations of Solar System objects).

To avoid this template from getting overcrowded, I suggest that only deep space missions (including Lunar and Lagrangian missions) be included in this template. Kind regards,Hms1103(talk)16:38, 28 March 2018 (UTC)

Inclusion criteria

There's a fair bit of cross-listing withTemplate:Space observatoriesand no real consistent approach to spacecraft sent to places like theLagrangian pointsand other exotic orbits (consider jumbled treatment ofTESSvsDSCOVRvsSTEREO), so I'm going to put forward some guidelines on what goes where:

• Space Probes = spacecraft whose mission is primarily to travel into proximity of an object to conduct observations
• Space Observatories = spacecraft whose mission is primarily to conduct observations of objects remotely or other phenomena (eg solar wind), often from LEO but also potentially from another point in space not in particular proximity to the target that offers environmental advantages (eg Solar orbits, halo orbits, Lissajous orbits etc.)
  • Garden-variety Earth observation satellites in conventional orbits are not Space Observatories, but those that observe the Earth or Earth-Space interactions from somewhere like L₁are. You can't send a probe to Earth because, well, we're there.

Based on this definitional divide, I'm kicking ACE, DSCOVR, SOHO, STEREO, Wind, Gaia, and THEMIS out toTemplate:Space observatoriesunless they're there already. And I'm cutting SolO from the latter.

Happy to discuss further, justbeing boldto start -- I realize this is one of these fun classification debates where there often many perspectives.The Tom(talk)01:03, 8 March 2020 (UTC)

A more specific criteria for the Space Probes could bespacecraft that conducts observations on site, orin situ.That way, potential irregularities such as anastronomical telescope on the Moon's surfacewill be categorized inTemplate:Space observatoriesinstead of being treated as a lunar probe. That being said,STEREOstudies the Sun from angles that are impossible to be seen from Earth, like the far side[1],so in that regard STEREO's nature is more of a deep space probe rather than a space observatory. Not to forget, it also searched for nearby asteroids during its brief visit to the SE-L4[2],Kind regards,Hms1103(talk)17:11, 11 March 2020 (UTC)