NASA makes history with closest-ever approach to Sun
Kyiv • UNN
NASA's space probe flew at a distance of 6.1 million kilometers from the Sun's surface, withstanding a temperature of 980°C. The device successfully transmitted a signal to Earth after several days of radio silence.
The NASA spacecraft has made history by surviving the closest approach to the Sun, UNN reports citing the BBC.
Details
Scientists received a signal from the Parker Solar Probe shortly before midnight EDT on Thursday (07:00 Kyiv time on Friday) after it had been out of contact for several days during its "hot" flyby.
NASA said the probe is "safe" and functioning normally after it flew only 6.1 million kilometers from the Sun's surface.
The probe plunged into our star's outer atmosphere on Christmas Eve, enduring brutal temperatures and extreme radiation in an attempt to better understand how the Sun works.
NASA then nervously waited for the signal, which was expected at 07:00 Kyiv time on December 28.
Traveling at speeds of up to 692,000 km/h, the spacecraft has withstood temperatures of up to 980 degrees Celsius, according to NASA's website.
But why make all these efforts to "touch" the Sun?
"This detailed study of the Sun allows Parker Solar Probe to make measurements that help scientists better understand how material in this region heats up to millions of degrees, track the origin of the solar wind (a continuous stream of material leaving the Sun), and discover how energetic particles accelerate to near the speed of light," the agency said.
Scientists hope that when the spacecraft passes through the outer atmosphere of our star - its corona - it will collect data that will help solve a long-standing mystery.
"The corona is really hot, and we have no idea why," explained Dr. Jennifer Millard, an astronomer at Fifth Star Labs in Wales.
"The surface of the Sun has a temperature of about 6000°C or so, but the corona, this rarefied outer atmosphere that you can see during solar eclipses, reaches millions of degrees - and it's further away from the Sun. So how does this atmosphere get hot?"
The mission should also help scientists better understand the solar wind, a constant stream of charged particles escaping from the corona.
When these particles interact with the Earth's magnetic field, the sky is illuminated by dazzling auroras.
But this so-called space weather can also cause problems by disrupting power grids, electronics, and communication systems.
"Understanding the Sun, its activity, space weather, solar wind is very important for our daily life on Earth," said Dr. Millard.
AddendumAddendum
The Parker Solar Probe was launched in 2018, heading for the center of our solar system.
It has already flown past the Sun 21 times, getting closer and closer, but the visit on Christmas Eve was a record-breaking close.
