NASA’s Parker Solar Probe is poised to make its record flyby of the Sun on Christmas Eve. The probe will come as close as 6.1 million kilometers from the Sun’s surface, marking the first of its three final and closest approaches to the Sun. This mission has been in the making since the probe’s launch in 2018.
The Parker Solar Probe, named after astrophysicist Eugene Newman Parker, is in good health and operating normally. The mission operators at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Maryland received a beacon transmission from Parker, through NASA’s Deep Space Network complex in Canberra, Australia, confirming its status.
No human-made object has ever passed this close to a star, said Nick Pinkine, Parker Solar Probe mission operations manager at APL. This mission will truly be returning data from uncharted territory, providing valuable insights into the mysteries of the Sun.
During the closest approach or perihelion, the spacecraft will not be in contact with mission operations. However, Parker will transmit another beacon tone on December 27, to confirm its health following the close flyby.
The Parker Solar Probe has already completed 21 close approaches to the Sun, with the 21st close approach made on September 30. The spacecraft has also zoomed past Venus seven times, using its gravity to aim towards a record-setting series of flights around the Sun. On November 6, Parker completed its seventh and final Venus gravity-assist maneuver, passing within 387 kilometers of Venus’ surface. This flyby adjusted Parker’s trajectory into the final orbital configuration of its primary mission.
The probe’s mission is not just about setting records. It is also about understanding the Sun’s corona, its wispy outer atmosphere, which is hotter than the Sun’s surface. This phenomenon has puzzled scientists for years. The probe’s findings could provide insights into space weather and solar wind, which can interact with Earth’s magnetic field and can damage satellites, knock out power grids, and supercharge the northern lights.
The probe is equipped with a 4.5-inch-thick heat shield made of a carbon-composite material, which can withstand temperatures up to 2,500 F. This allows the spacecraft instruments to maintain a comfortable temperature, despite its proximity to our roiling star.
The Parker Solar Probe’s mission is a testament to the importance of Eugene Newman Parker’s body of work, founding a new field of science that continues to inspire research and many important science questions NASA continues to study and further understand every day.
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