We all know the importance of preventing our gadgets from overheating, but nothing compares to what NASA’s Parker Solar Probe is about to endure as it makes its closest-ever flyby of the Sun.
Launched in 2018, the spacecraft has already passed our star 21 times. With each pass, it moves closer to the center of the solar system, aiming to explore why the Sun appears to be hotter in its atmosphere than on its surface. Scientists are also hoping to gain a better understanding of solar wind, the stream of particles that collides with Earth’s magnetic field to produce fantastic auroras while sometimes causing issues with power grids and communications systems on Earth.
Today, however, the probe will be only 3.8 million miles (about 6.1 million kilometers) from the Sun’s surface, immersing itself in its outer atmosphere—also known as the corona. You might think this doesn’t sound like a close pass, but for context, Earth is 93 million miles (150 million kilometers) away from our star. This means the spacecraft will be more than 24 times closer to the Sun than we are, battling with extreme radiation and temperatures of 1,400ºC (2,552ºF).
The Parker Solar Probe is shielded by a layer of a carbon composite material measuring 11.43 cm (4.5 inches) in thickness, which can withstand temperatures up to 1,377ºC (2,500ºF). With the margin for error being so tight, NASA scientists will be on the edges of their seats as they wait to discover whether the probe survives its hellish solar ordeal. The space firm will have to wait until December 27—which is when communication signals are expected to return—to find out whether it does.
The spacecraft—named after Dr. Eugene N. Parker, who pioneered our understanding of the Sun—is set to travel at a breathtaking speed of 430,000 mph (692,000 km/h). This means it will dip into and out of the Sun’s corona as quickly as possible, limiting its exposure to the severe conditions while still giving it enough time to use its four instrument suites to collect solar data.
NASA’s Parker mission will break several records. The probe will fly more than seven times closer to the Sun than any spacecraft has in the past, it is expected to travel faster than any previous human-made object, and this is our first attempt to enter our star’s corona. Speaking to the BBC, NASA’s Head of Science, Dr Nicola Fox, says the probe is “a tough, tough little spacecraft” that is “designed to withstand all of these brutal, brutal conditions.”