When we talk about records, most people typically think of a human (or several) accomplishing a great feat. And, well, we also tend to imagine it’s something done on Earth. Although there are more than a few records set in space (mostly by astronauts), they are indeed not very common.
Indeed, just a few weeks ago, this very thing happened. On September 27th, NASA‘s Parker Solar Probe became the fastest human-made object. The probe sent by the U.S. space agency reached a speed of 635,266 kilometers per hour as it approached the Sun at a distance of only 7.26 million kilometers, closer than any other spacecraft before.
Launched in August 2018, the Parker Solar Probe’s mission is to study the Sun’s corona, the outermost layer of its atmosphere. To achieve this, it utilizes gravitational assists from Venus, allowing it to lose orbital energy and “fall” closer to the Sun. The probe is scheduled to make a final flyby of Venus and reach its closest approach to the Sun in late 2024, at a mere 6.16 million kilometers from its surface.
Indeed, it not only sets records in speed and distance but also in scientific achievements. NASA‘s Parker Solar Probe has become the first spacecraft to pass through a coronal mass ejection (CME), a massive eruption of plasma that the Sun releases into space.
This moment was captured by the probe’s camera, which survived without damage. By analyzing these images, scientists will be able to gain a better understanding of how the Sun operates and how to predict solar storms that impact Earth.
The Parker Solar Probe is a marvel of engineering and space exploration that is revealing to us the secrets of the Sun, making us witnesses to its incredible power.
