NASA's Parker Solar Probe safe after historic closest-ever approach to sun
A NASA spacecraft made history and is safe after making the closest-ever approach to the sun. On Tuesday, the Parker Solar Probe hurtled through the sizzling solar atmosphere and passed within a record-breaking 3.8 million miles of the sun's surface.
Just before midnight Thursday, scientists at NASA received a signal from the probe after it had been out of communication for several days during its burning-hot flyby.
NASA said the spacecraft was safe and operating after its historic flight on Christmas Eve and noted Parker is expected to send back detailed telemetry data on its status on New Year's Day.
Parker got more than seven times closer to the sun than previous spacecraft, traveling at a maximum speed of about 430,000 mph. It's the fastest spacecraft ever built and is outfitted with a heat shield that can withstand scorching temperatures up to 2,500 degrees Fahrenheit (1,371 degrees Celsius).
It will continue circling the sun at this distance until at least September. Since it was launched, Parker has been using flybys of Venus to gravitationally pull it into a tighter orbit with the sun.
Scientists hope to better understand why the corona is hundreds of times hotter than the sun's surface and what drives the solar wind, the supersonic stream of charged particles constantly blasting away from the sun.
The Parker Solar Probe was launched in 2018 to get a close-up look at the sun. Before this week's historic milestone, Parker had flown straight through the sun's corona, the outer atmosphere visible during a total solar eclipse.
The sun's warming rays make life possible on Earth. But severe solar storms can temporarily scramble radio communications and disrupt power.
The sun is currently at the maximum phase of its 11-year cycle, triggering colorful auroras in unexpected places.
"It both is our closest, friendliest neighbor," NASA's Joe Westlake said, "but also at times is a little angry."
