A Spacecraft 'Touched' the Sun for the First Time in History

[Zorro]

For the first time in history, an object made by humans entered the sun’s atmosphere—and lived to tell the tale. NASA’s Parker Solar Probe spent five hours catching rays and collecting data in the sun’s corona before moving back out to a safer, more distant orbit.

It’s the closest we’ve ever gotten to visiting a star, and the new data could open up huge doors in our understanding of how the sun evolved and how it now behaves. The new findings were published Tuesday in Physical Review Letters.

“Parker Solar Probe ‘touching the sun’ is a monumental moment for solar science and a truly remarkable feat,” NASA associate administrator Thomas Zurbuchen said in a statement. “Not only does this milestone provide us with deeper insights into our sun's evolution and its impacts on our solar system, but everything we learn about our own star also teaches us more about stars in the rest of the universe.”

Parker was launched in 2018 with the goal of one day making it to the sun’s corona—an outer boundary of plasma that extends millions of miles beyond the surface of a star. Remember the 2017 solar eclipse? The bright light you saw? stretching from the sun’s shadow is the corona, home to temperatures of up to 1,800,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

https://www.thedailybeast.com/nasas-parker-solar-probe-is-the-first-spacecraft-to-touch-the-sun-in-history

[Sneederbunk]

1. Craft was carrying 25,000 gallons of sun screen.

[Wicked Blue]

3. lol

[TheBlackAdder]

6. SPF 2 Million

[Mr.Bill]

16. NASA isn't stupid.

They did it at night.

[crickets]

20. *snerk*

[old as dirt]

2. Set The Controls For The Heart Of The Sun

[I_UndergroundPanther]

25. I love pink floyd

And set the control to the heart of the sun is one of my favorites.

Thanks.

[ProfessorGAC]

32. Is That The Version Off UmmaGumma?

I'm not the biggest PF fan (I don't dislike them, though), but I always liked that album a lot.

[old as dirt]

33. For comparrison

[Wounded Bear]

4. Cool stuff! Thanks for the link...nt

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

5. Oh, my.

I'll have to ask My Son The Astronomer about this.

[electric_blue68]

7. Wow.

[Ace Rothstein]

8. At least they had the sense to send it in the winter when it is colder.

[lastlib]

10. Yabbut, why didn't they go at night??!?

You'd think NASA guys would be smarter than that..........

[Ace Rothstein]

12. Well the sun is turned off at night so they wouldn't be able to see it.

[Dr. Strange]

15. This new learning amazes me.

Explain to me again how sheep’s bladders may be employed to prevent earthquakes.

[I_UndergroundPanther]

26. Lol😹

[EarlG]

9. I guess International Rescue will not be needed this time

[crickets]

21. Thunderbirds are go!

I used to love watching the Thunderbirds on Saturdays. Saturday morning cartoons followed by Saturday kids' shows and monster movies were the best in the '60s. Thanks for linking to a YouTube channel with entire episodes - can't wait to watch later.

[Jimbo S]

27. Captain Scarlet and the Mysterons

is an earliest childhood memory.

[rambler_american]

13. Mr Sun

https://www.facebook.com/anger.walsh.gordy/posts/gary-larson-could-see-into-the-future/1500552779992309/

[ShazzieB]

14. Now that we can visit the sun, when can we start yeeting people into it?

I have a list...

[SergeStorms]

22. The Orange Pig gets the first seat available.

We'll get a GoFundMe going for his ticket, and lots of diet coke. Then he'll stare straight at it the entire trip. Can you imagine what the trip will do for his tan?

[Jerry2144]

17. That must have been easy

Because they did it at night!

[First Speaker]

18. Wow...fiction becomes fact. Read Bradbury's "The Golden Apples of the Sun"...

...about a spaceship capturing a cup of the sun...lovely story.

[Gore1FL]

19. I hope it doesn't get corona virus! nt

[SergeStorms]

23. Corona crispy...

that's for sure.

[Shanti Shanti Shanti]

31. The sun's corona may technically be millions of degrees but the particles are so apart it cant hurt

The shields are holding Capt!

[Swede]

24. The Golden Apples of the Sun, aboard the good ship Copa de Oro/Prometheus/Icarus.

This story popped into my head. Ray Bradbury, way back when.

[Kid Berwyn]

28. That's only, like, a million Celsius.

[Act_of_Reparation]

29. It didn't get that close.

The region where the probe was deployed is about 1,500 F, which by my accounting is still pretty damned hot.

[Kid Berwyn]

30. Makes Venus seem frigid.

In 900F, Russia’s Venera sent back pics for about an hour.

America’s Magellan used cloud penetrating radar…



https://nssdc.gsfc.nasa.gov/planetary/planets/venuspage.html