The scientific possibilities for coronagraphy from the Solar Orbiter

This paper briefly discusses the major open issues relative to the understanding of the solar corona and the origin of the solar wind in the context of the opportunities offered by the Solar Orbiter, future mission of the European Space Agency. The Solar Orbiter mission profile offers unique opportunities for the study of the initiation and propagation of coronal mass ejection, of the evolution of the global corona and its restructuring in response to the abrupt changes induced by coronal activity, and for the assessment of the role of the coronal magnetic topology in controlling the physical parameters of the fast and slow wind.