NASA Parker Solar Probe Reaches Close Approach 'Perihelion' to the Sun For the 18th Time

For the 18th time, NASA's Parker Solar Robe was able to make its close approach to the Sun on December 28, 2023.

NASA Parker Solar Probe's 18th Close Approach to Sun

This 18th close approach, called perihelion, took place at 7:56 p.m. EST. During them, the Parker Solar Probe was moving at a rate of 635,266 kph around the Sun. This was a match for its speed record during its 17th approach.

This event also served as the midway point in the 18th solar encounter of the mission, which started on December 24, 2023, and went on until January 2, 2024.

The probe pushed through with the encounter in good health. All of its systems were working normally. The Parker Solar Probe checked in with the operators of the mission at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, where it was also built and designed. The probe relayed a status beacon tone on January 5.

Parker Solar Probe

In 2021, NASA's Parker Solar Probe became the first craft to fly through the Sun's corona, or upper atmosphere. As it orbits around the Sun, it gets closer to the massive star. Because of this, the probe has to face intense radiation and heat.

The probe has the capacity to revolutionize what is known about the Sun. It gradually orbits closer to the Sun compared to any other craft that went before it. It does so within its orbit of Mercury.

The Parker Solar Probe is gathering images and measurements to expand current understanding regarding the solar wind's origin and evolution. It also crucially contributes to forecasting space-environment changes that impact technology and life here on Earth.

The craft is loaded with four instrument suites that are designed for examining plasma, magnetic fields, and energetic particles. These are also designed to image solar wind.

For it to push through with its investigation, the probe and its own instrumentations are protected from the Sun by a carbon-composite shield that is roughly 11.43 centimeters thick. This shield can hold through temperatures that go as high as nearly 1,377 degrees Celsius.

The NASA mission has been named after the late Dr. Eugene N. Parker, who was the pioneer behind modern solar understanding. When Dr. Parker was a young professor during the mid-1950s at the University of Chicago, Dr. Parker devised a mathematical theory that focused on solar wind predictions. The professor was able to revolutionize the field throughout his career. He advanced ideas that were able to cater to crucial questions regarding the workings of the Sun and other stars across the universe.

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