NASA's Parker Solar Probe has made history with a record-breaking flight around the Sun, the space agency has confirmed. The spacecraft set a new benchmark early morning on December 24, 3.8 million miles from the outer solar corona atmosphere.
A signal received by NASA operational teams acknowledged late on December 26 that the probe had survived the close encounter and was operating normally.
“Flying this close to the Sun is a historic moment in humanity's first mission to a star,” Nicky Fox, head of NASA's Science Mission Directorate, said in a statement Friday.
When the spacecraft reaches a new position in January 2025, it will transmit data from this flyby back to Earth.
Read more: Check out NASA's stunning image of the Sun spitting out its largest solar flare of 2017
According to NASA, the Parker Solar Probe has reached speeds of up to 430,000 miles per hour, withstanding temperatures of up to 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit (982 Celsius). Although the probe is scheduled to orbit the Sun two more times, this mission marks the closest it will ever come.
The next scheduled closed solar transits are expected to take place on March 22 and June 19, 2025.
“Data from unknown territory”
The mission is part of a broader effort by scientists to “conduct unparalleled scientific research with the potential to transform our understanding of our nearest star,” the agency said on its website.
The spacecraft, launched in 2018, performed multiple flybys of Venus to gradually approach the Sun. These flybys also gave scientists a glimpse of Venus, thanks to onboard instruments capable of recording visible and near-infrared light from the planet, the agency said on its website. This allowed the researchers to peer through the dense cloud cover of Venus.
When the probe first entered the solar atmosphere in 2021, it provided groundbreaking information about the corona.
“No man-made object has ever passed this close to a star, so Parker will truly be returning data from uncharted territory,” said Nick Pinkin, operations manager of the Parker Solar Probe mission. press release in December. “We are excited to hear from the spacecraft when it orbits the Sun.”
The Parker Solar Probe is part of NASA's Living With a Star program, which aims to investigate aspects of the solar system that affect life on Earth.