NASA's Parker Solar Probe to Make Historic Flyby of the Sun on Christmas Eve
NASA's Parker Solar Probe is set to make its closest-ever approach to the
Sun on December 24, 2024, coming within 3.86 million miles of the solar
surface, closer than any human-made object in history. The spacecraft, which
is the size of a small car, will travel at speeds of 430,000 mph during the
flyby.
The mission, designed to study the Sun’s outer atmosphere (the corona), will help scientists understand why the Sun’s corona is much hotter than its surface and how solar storms, which can affect Earth, are triggered. The Parker probe will also study solar wind and high-energy particles expelled from the Sun.
After the flyby, NASA will wait a few days for a signal to confirm the spacecraft's survival. Images from the close encounter are expected to be transmitted to Earth in January. This mission is part of a broader effort to enhance our understanding of space weather, which can impact satellites, power grids, and even the auroras on Earth.
The Parker Solar Probe, launched in 2018, has already made over 20 orbits around the Sun and is now entering its final close passes. This historic mission is named after astrophysicist Eugene Parker, who first proposed the existence of solar wind.
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