The reach of humanity to the Sun is now closer than ever before. A feat of ingenuity and boldness, the Parker Solar Probe reached the fiery crown of our sun. More than just a quest; it’s an adventurous tale of surviving in the flames, solving riddles that have fascinated experts for decades. What secrets does the Sun keep from its nearest and dearest? Let’s find out…
On Christmas Eve 2024, the Parker Solar Probe (PSP) completed its closest pass to the Sun, achieving a major milestone. Travelling at a record-breaking speed of 690,000 kilometres per hour, the fastest human-made object was 6.1 million kilometres away from the solar surface. Despite enduring extreme heat and radiation, the probe successfully transmitted a signal two days later, confirming its normal operation. This pass is one of many planned flybys that will occur at such distance, providing invaluable data to deepen our understanding of the Sun.

The presence of the Sun plays a very vital role in the presence of life on Earth. At Space India, During the Space Explorers workshop “Solar observation with safe methods”, the students understand the importance of the Sun along with its different features. They learn the various methods by which the Sun can be safely observed without harming their eyes and make their own Sun Projectors and use them. Hands-on practice of aligning a telescope towards the Sun and observing through the telescope using the solar filter allows them to apply their learning. They also use a pinhole projector and solar view goggles to have a safe look at the Sun.
This achievement was 6 years in the making, after the PSP’s launch in August 2018. Named after Dr. Eugene N. Parker, the astrophysicist who first proposed the concept of solar wind in the 1950s, PSP is on a mission to solve fundamental questions in solar physics, such as why the Sun’s corona is much hotter than its surface and how the solar wind is accelerated., thus uncovering the mysteries that have puzzled scientists for decades. This mission marks humanity’s closest approach to a star, providing groundbreaking insights into the Sun’s behaviour and its influence on the solar system and us.
PSP is designed to withstand the harsh conditions near the Sun. It features a carbon-composite heat shield just 11.43 cm thick, which protects its instruments from temperatures as high as 1,427°C while keeping the spacecraft’s interior at a steady 29°C. Its solar panels are equipped with a fluid-cooling system, and the probe operates autonomously, using sensors to stay within the protective shadow of its heat shield.

Thus far, a key discovery from the mission is the identification of ‘switchbacks,’ while we gained new insights into the corona’s outer boundary. According to Kelly Korreck, a NASA heliophysicist, “The data provides a new perspective on the Sun’s atmosphere.”
PSP has two more scheduled flybys with a similar speed and distance in 2025. After completing its primary mission after the second flyby this year, in June 2025, the probe will remain in orbit to conduct additional observations. There has been no confirmation for a mission extension but the spacecraft is currently healthy. Eventually, PSP’s ability to transmit data to Earth will end when the solar wind pushes the spacecraft out of alignment with Earth. When the mission eventually ends, only PSP’s carbon heat shield will be left as the rest of the craft incinerates, potentially orbiting the sun till the end of the solar system.

As Parker Solar Probe ventures closer to the Sun, it’s crossing into uncharted regimes and making new discoveries. This image represents Parker Solar Probe’s distances from the Sun for some of these milestones and discoveries. Until the mission ends, our probe promises to expand our knowledge of the Sun and its impact on the solar system, symbolizing humanity’s ongoing pursuit of exploration and discovery.
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