NASA’s Parker Solar Probe has survived the closest-ever Sun flyby

May Be Interested In:Mobilzer: No-code mobile app builder – Dynamic Business


NASA sent its Parker Solar Probe just 3.8 million miles from the surface of the Sun — and it survived. The probe transmitted a signal back to Earth on the night of December 26th, “indicating it’s in good health and operating normally,” according to NASA.

The mission marks the closest the Parker Solar Probe — or any human-man object at all — has ever gotten to the Sun. The probe set off on its mission on December 20th, with the closest approach occurring on December 24th as it flew 430,000 miles per hour past the solar surface. Mission operations were out of contact with the probe during this time.

Now that NASA has confirmation of the mission’s success, it expects the Parker Solar Probe to send “detailed telemetry data on its status” on January 1st. The close flyby is supposed to help scientists get a better understanding of solar wind, the Sun’s heat, and how “energetic particles are accelerated to near light speed.”

The Parker Solar Probe was first launched by NASA and Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in 2018. It’s designed to why study the corona — the atmosphere surrounding the sun — gets so hot. To survive these close encounters, the Parker Solar Probe is equipped with a Sun-facing heat shield that reaches around 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit, while the probe itself remains just 85 degrees Fahrenheit.

share Share facebook pinterest whatsapp x print

Similar Content

Google News
Google News
Scottie Pippen and the heady rise of the athlete turned crypto bro
Scottie Pippen and the heady rise of the athlete turned crypto bro
Severance fans share 'mind-blowing' theory about major character
Severance fans share ‘mind-blowing’ theory about major character
Trip to Russia: Kent Hughes didn’t just go to observe Ivan Demidov
Trip to Russia: Kent Hughes didn’t just go to observe Ivan Demidov – Dose.ca
Laughing gas could be picked up by a breathalyser
Laughing gas could be picked up by a breathalyser
Christy Carlson Romano shows gruesome eye injury after being ‘shot in the face’ while shooting clay pigeons
Christy Carlson Romano shows gruesome eye injury after being ‘shot in the face’ while shooting clay pigeons
The Newsmakers: Voices that Lead the Change | © 2024 | Daily News