The US space agency NASA is set to make history by sending a spacecraft closer to the sun than ever before. The spacecraft is set to pass within 6.2 million kilometers of the sun, the star in our solar system, according to a report published on December 24 by the British media outlet BBC.
NASA’s Parker Solar Probe, launched in 2018, has already passed the sun 21 times. But on Tuesday (December 24), it will make its closest approach to the sun, potentially setting a record. It will then be just 62 kilometers from the sun, which is very close compared to the 150 million kilometers between the sun and Earth.
In particular, it is a rare and daring move for this spacecraft to get so close to the Sun, as the Sun’s temperature is around 5,500 degrees Celsius.
Meanwhile, the spacecraft has not been able to communicate with it for the past few days. Scientists are hoping to receive a message at 5 a.m. international time on December 28, which will confirm whether the spacecraft is successfully continuing its operations.
NASA’s science chief Dr. Nicola said, “Humans have been studying the sun for more than a thousand years, but we have not had the opportunity to go close to the sun to learn more about its actual structure and activities.”
He also said that through this mission, scientists will gain a deeper understanding of the Sun, which will help open new horizons in space research in the future.
Through this mission, scientists are looking forward to obtaining new information about the Sun’s composition, temperature, and other properties.
