Parker Solar Probe to Set New Speed Record in Historic Christmas Eve Solar Encounter
NASA’s Parker Solar Probe to Shatter Speed Record in Historic Christmas Eve Solar Flyby
NASA’s Parker Solar Probe is set to make history on December 24, 2024, by achieving humanity’s closest approach to the Sun, coming within 6.1 million kilometers (3.86 million miles) of its surface. During this Christmas Eve flyby, the spacecraft will travel at an unprecedented speed of 690,000 kilometers per hour (about 430,000 miles per hour), breaking its previous speed record of 635,266 kilometers per hour and solidifying its status as the fastest human-made object ever recorded, according to ABC News.
As the probe cuts through plumes of solar plasma, it will collect critical data to advance scientific understanding of the Sun’s behavior and its impact on Earth. “No human-made object has ever passed this close to a star, so Parker will truly be returning data from uncharted territory,” said Nick Pinkine, mission operations manager at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL), as reported by the New York Post.
Launched in August 2018, the Parker Solar Probe has been on a trajectory steadily bringing it closer to the Sun. It first set a record in October 2018, becoming the closest human-made object to the Sun at 42.7 million kilometers (26.55 million miles). The spacecraft is equipped with a thermal shield capable of withstanding temperatures up to 1,400 degrees Celsius (2,500°F), ensuring its survival in the extreme conditions near the solar surface, News9live reported.
During the upcoming flyby, the probe’s heat shield is expected to endure temperatures surpassing 1,371 degrees Celsius (about 2,500°F), according to Ars Technica. The mission is focused on studying the Sun’s corona—the outermost layer of its atmosphere—and includes instruments to analyze magnetic fields, solar wind, high-energy particles, and solar phenomena. By venturing so close, the probe will enable scientists to directly measure the solar wind’s inner origins and observe the source of the Sun’s most energetic particles.
“Understanding the dynamics of our local star helps us protect space-based assets and prepare for future astronaut missions,” said Nicki Rayl, NASA’s deputy director of heliophysics.
Since its launch, the probe has significantly advanced our understanding of solar phenomena, such as the puzzlingly high temperatures of the Sun’s corona, which can reach hundreds of times hotter than its surface.
The Parker Solar Probe is named in honor of the late Eugene Parker, the pioneering astrophysicist who first theorized the existence of solar wind. Parker witnessed the spacecraft’s launch in 2018 and passed away in 2022 at the age of 94.
This mission continues to push the boundaries of exploration, bringing humanity closer than ever to unraveling the mysteries of our closest star.
