Space travel Parker Solar Probe space probe in perfect condition
The "Parker Solar Probe" probe has survived its flyby of the sun at unprecedented proximity without any problems. The probe's systems and scientific instruments were intact and functioning normally, the US space agency Nasa announced.
04.01.2025, 09:54
SDA
"Parker Solar Probe" had flown deep into the sun's atmosphere on December 24, reaching previously unexplored regions. According to Nasa's calculations, the probe came within around six million kilometers of the surface of the sun.
On its record flight, it reached a speed of around 690,000 kilometers per hour. It therefore flew faster than any other man-made object to date. A thick heat shield protected the vehicle. During the closest approach to the sun, the research teams on Earth had no contact with the probe.
"Although Parker Solar Probe was closer to the sun than any other man-made object in history, it performed exactly as designed and made observations that no one has been able to make before," Helene Winters, project manager for Parker Solar Probe at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory Operations Center, was quoted as saying in a statement.
Among other things, the "Parker Solar Probe Mission" should provide insights into why the sun's outer atmosphere is many times hotter than its surface. Among other things, this should help to understand how the atmospheres of other stars work and answer questions about how solar currents are generated in the sun's atmosphere.
