Why traveling straight up from Earth is harder than reaching Pluto
In short: While we have sent probes to the edges of our solar system, we have barely explored the space directly above and below the Sun. This video explains the orbital mechanics that make vertical travel so difficult and the extreme methods scientists are considering to achieve it.
The primary obstacle to vertical travel is Earth's orbital velocity. Because our planet moves around the Sun at approximately 67,000 mph, every spacecraft launched from Earth inherits this sideways momentum. To move perpendicular to the ecliptic plane, a probe must actively fight against this massive orbital speed, making a direct climb
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- Summary by Intellect · source: What's Directly Above And Below The Sun?
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