NASA’s Parker Solar Probe is set to make its closest orbit to the Sun on December 24, 2024.
Current advancements in technology This makes it normal for probes to be sent out to study the universe and space, but in the past we have often seen probes sent to the moon and various planets, with no probes being sent near stars, including the sun, in the solar system. our universe For reasons that are well known, that is … it’s very hot!
But recently NASA (NASA) is about to create an incredible moment. By sending a probe into The most “closest hits” to the sun in the history of space exploration
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By on the day 24 Dec 2024 spacecraftParker Solar Probe NASA’s spacecraft will pass the sun at 195 km/s and come within 6.1 million km (6.1 million km) of the sun’s surface. No man-made object has ever been this close before.
Dr. Noir Raouafi, a scientist at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory and one of the Parker project scientists, said: “We are basically close to landing on a star. ”
He added, “This will be a great achievement for humanity. which is equivalent to the moon landing in 1969.”
For the Parker spacecraft’s speeds of up to 195 km/sec. This is equivalent to flying from New York to London in less than 30 seconds. It uses the sun’s enormous gravitational pull and centrifugal force to accelerate. Parker will swing from the vicinity of Venus towards the sun.
The Parker Solar Probe is one of NASA’s most audacious missions ever. Sent into space since 2018, the goal is to orbit the Sun repeatedly to collect data.
As for the upcoming close approach to the sun this year. There are very big challenges. At the point where Parker’s spacecraft will be closest to the Sun, It is estimated that Temperatures at the front of the spacecraft may reach as high as 1,400 degrees Celsius.
The Parker’s strategy to escape the heat of hell calls for that. It is approaching the sun quickly and leaving it quickly. They measure the sun’s environment with a set of instruments mounted behind a thick heat shield.
Scientists hope that This study will advance knowledge about some important processes of the Sun. In particular, a clearer explanation of how the “corona” or the outer atmosphere of the sun works. which consists of high energy particles
What scientists want to know is this. Why is the Sun’s corona layer Therefore, the temperature is higher than the photosphere. (Photosphere), which is the layer where the sun emits light. But the temperature of the Sun at the surface of the photosphere is only about 6,000 degrees Celsius. Meanwhile, temperatures inside the corona can reach 1 million degrees Celsius or more.
This is contrary to common sense that The temperature should decrease with distance from the star’s core.
In addition, within the corona area The outflow of charged particles, such as electrons, protons and heavy ions, is accelerated into a supersonic wind moving at speeds of 400 km/s, known as the effective “solar wind”. to communication in the world and may even affect the electrical grid.
As for the solar wind, scientists are still unable to fully explain the process of its formation.
Raouafi said “This brings a new dimension. Especially now that we’re considering sending humans back to the moon. and plans to establish a permanent settlement on the lunar surface.”
The December 24, 2024 mission will be the culmination of Parker’s mission. Because it will not be able to get close to the Sun again after December because its orbit cannot pass Venus. (to fling oneself towards the sun) any longer
Compiled from BBC
