The halfway point of the mission will be marked by the 12th close flyby of the sun-gazer.
During this flyby, the solar probe will get as close to the solar surface as possible, which is about as close as it drew during the last close approach.
The solar system's closest planet to the sun will reach a top speed of The International Space Station is 21 times faster than that. The closest approach will be at 6:50 p.m. The mission is overseen by the Applied Physics Laboratory at the University of Baltimore.
What is inside the sun? A star tour from the inside out.
The speed record will not be broken again this time, as it has several times throughout its mission. What is more valuable is how many close passes are providing information about the sun's complex behavior, which leads to phenomena such as super heating the million-degree corona that is much hotter than the plasma on the sun's surface.
TheParker Solar Probe mission is not only changing the landscape of solar and heliophysics research before our eyes, but it is inspiring us to pursue challenging ideas that we considered out of reach a few years ago.
The mission has crossed the critical surface many times. The solar wind is where solar material leaves the surface and becomes a critical radiation source that affects space weather all over the solar system. Scientists now know that the boundary is wrinkled.
The heating and acceleration of the solar wind can be understood byamplifying the solar wind below the critical boundary.
The origin of the magnetic field is determined by finding a dust-free area around the sun where the grains sublimate due to extreme heat.
The mission is expected to uncover the nature of space weather, which can affect our planet by shorting out satellites, power lines or other infrastructure during the most powerful storms. The events are usually harmless and produce colorful displays in the sky.
The solar probe has four different instrument suites. Sometimes it does planetary flybys of Venus to pick up speed or adjust course, and sometimes it does stunning images along the way. The next flyby will take place in August of 2023.
During its seven-year mission, the Parker Solar Probe is expected to make 24 close passes of the sun.
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