Spacecraft hurls itself into Sun for science

A spacecraft is flying into the Sun’s atmosphere for the first time.

The Parker Solar Probe is already remarkable: It is the fastest human-made object ever, reaching speeds of 430,000 miles per hour on its path toward our star. On Christmas Eve it makes its most dramatic move yet, hurling itself inside the Sun’s halo of ionized gases known as the corona, coming within an unprecedented 3.8 million miles of the star’s surface. It won’t be clear whether the mission was a success until December 28, when the probe is hoped to emerge.

“Scientists estimate that the probe’s heat shield will endure temperatures in excess of 2,500° Fahrenheit (1,371° C),” Ars Technica reported, as the spacecraft attempts to document the source of the stream of charged particles, known as solar wind, which emanate from the corona.