Overview of the SOHO Planning System

The SOHO Science Working Team (SWT), composed by all the Principal Investigators (PI), sets the overall science policy and direction for mission operations, sets priorities, resolve conflicts, and considers Guest Investigator observing proposals. The SWT meets every three months to consider the quarter starting in one month's time and form a general scientific plan. If any non-standard Deep Space Network (DSN) contacts are required, the requests must be formulated at this quarterly meeting.

The three-month plan is refined during the monthly planning meetings of the Science Planning Working Group (SPWG), composed by the PIs or their representatives, which allocates observing sessions to specific programs.

At weekly meetings, coordinated timelines are produced for the instruments, together with detailed plans for spacecraft operations.

Daily meetings optimize the weekly schedule, fine pointing targets in response to solar conditions and adjust operations if there are changes in the DSN schedule.