Breaking Human Limits! NASA Probe Sets Record for Closest Approach to the Sun | WPN World People News

NASA's Parker Solar Probe has achieved a groundbreaking milestone by reaching a distance of just 6 million kilometers (3.7 million miles) from the Sun's surface on the 24th, traveling at an astonishing speed of 690,000 kilometers per hour (430,000 miles per hour). This accomplishment marks the closest approach to the Sun by any human-made object, breaking previous records and conducting critical observational tasks.

According to foreign media reports, NASA launched the Parker Solar Probe in 2018 to observe the Sun up close. Following the mission plan, the probe successfully flew through the Sun's outermost layer of its scorching atmosphere three years later, on the 24th. This achievement makes it the first spacecraft to "touch" the Sun at a distance of 6 million kilometers, setting a historic record.

This extreme mission required overcoming the Sun's intense heat. The Parker Solar Probe is equipped with a specially designed heat shield capable of withstanding extreme temperatures of up to 1,371 degrees Celsius (2,500 degrees Fahrenheit). After its launch, the probe navigates the solar system in a "heliocentric orbit," flying around the Sun and Venus. Following its seventh close encounter with Venus, the probe delved deeper into the Sun's corona.

Currently, the Parker Solar Probe is enduring the challenges of extreme heat and powerful radiation. Details on how it accomplished this close flyby, along with additional information, will only become available once communication signals are reestablished in the coming days. Nevertheless, scientists are eagerly awaiting the first batch of data from the Parker Solar Probe.

Through the Parker Solar Probe mission, scientists aim to gain a deeper understanding of why the Sun's corona is hundreds of times hotter than its surface and uncover the driving forces behind the solar wind—supersonic charged particles constantly emitted by the Sun. It is reported that the Parker Solar Probe will maintain close contact with the Sun for approximately one week, providing critical images and data to unveil the Sun's mysteries. Additionally, this mission has brought the probe seven times closer to the Sun than any previous spacecraft while setting a new speed record of 690,000 kilometers per hour for spaceflight.