Project ziolkovsky — Solar Probe mission concept

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Investigation of the close vicinity of the Sun has a high priority due to the fundamental importance of the corona and solar wind source region studies. It is the only important region of the Solar System not yet explored in-situ . A simple solar probe passing through the region of solar wind acceleration is considered as a first step in the near solar studies. A two-spacecratt approach with probes passing at different perihelion distances promises a significantly better understanding of the solar wind acceleration processes. The Proton launcher is an option for a double launch directing the solar probes to the solar neighbourhood with Jupiter Gravity Assist.