Eight days after its record-breaking closest approach to the Sun’s surface Dec. 24, 2024, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe has confirmed the spacecraft’s systems and science instruments are healthy and operating normally, including collecting science data as it swung around our star.
Breaking its previous record by flying just 3.8 million miles above the surface of the Sun, Parker Solar Probe hurtled through the solar atmosphere at 430,000 miles per hour — faster than any human-made object has ever moved. A beacon tone, received in the mission operations center at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, late in the evening of Thursday, Dec. 26, confirmed the spacecraft had made it through the encounter safely.
The telemetry (or housekeeping data) that APL began receiving on Jan. 1 provided more detail on the spacecraft’s operating status and condition. It showed, for example, that Parker had executed the commands that had been programmed into its flight computers before the flyby, and that its science instruments were operational during the flyby itself.
Telemetry transmission, through NASA’s Deep Space Network, continues through Thursday. Science data transmission will begin later this month, when the spacecraft and its most powerful onboard antenna are in better alignment with Earth to transmit at higher data rates. Parker Solar Probe’s next two close passes of the Sun, at approximately the same distance and speed, will occur March 22 and June 19.
Parker Solar Probe was developed as part of NASA’s Living With a Star program to explore aspects of the Sun-Earth system that directly affect life and society. The Living With a Star program is managed by the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. The Applied Physics Laboratory designed, built, and operates the spacecraft and manages the mission for NASA.
By Michael Buckley Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory
Following its record-breaking closest approach to the Sun, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe has transmitted a beacon tone back to Earth indicating it’s in good health and operating normally.
The mission operations team at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland received the signal just before midnight EST, on the night of Dec. 26. The team was out of contact with the spacecraft during closest approach, which occurred on Dec. 24, with Parker Solar Probe zipping just 3.8 million miles from the solar surface while moving about 430,000 miles per hour.
The spacecraft is expected to send back detailed telemetry data on its status on Jan. 1.
This close-up study of the Sun allows Parker Solar Probe to take measurements that help scientists better understand how material in this region gets heated to millions of degrees, trace the origin of the solar wind (a continuous flow of material escaping the Sun), and discover how energetic particles are accelerated to near light speed. Previous close passes have helped scientists pinpoint the origins of structures in the solar wind and map the outer boundary of the Sun’s atmosphere.
Parker Solar Probe was developed as part of NASA’s Living With a Star program to explore aspects of the Sun-Earth system that directly affect life and society. The Living With a Star program is managed by the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. APL designed, built, and operates the spacecraft and manages the mission for NASA.
NASA’s Parker Solar Probe is in good health and operating normally as it speeds toward its closest-ever flight around the Sun on Christmas Eve.
Mission operators at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, received a beacon transmission from Parker, through NASA’s Deep Space Network complex in Canberra, Australia, at 7:20 p.m. EST today indicating all spacecraft systems were operating normally.
“This is one example of NASA’s bold missions, doing something that no one else has ever done before to answer longstanding questions about our universe,” said Arik Posner, Parker Solar Probe program scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “We can’t wait to receive that first status update from the spacecraft and start receiving the science data in the coming weeks.”
Parker is now on course to fly just 3.8 million miles (around 6.1 million kilometers) from the surface of the Sun on Tuesday, Dec. 24, at 6:53 a.m. EST. During closest approach, or perihelion, mission operations will be out of contact with the spacecraft, and Parker will transmit another beacon tone on Friday, Dec. 27, to confirm its health following the close flyby.
“No human-made object has ever passed this close to a star, so Parker will truly be returning data from uncharted territory” said Nick Pinkine, Parker Solar Probe mission operations manager at APL. “We’re excited to hear back from the spacecraft when it swings back around the Sun.”
Parker Solar Probe was developed as a part of NASA’s Living With a Star program to explore aspects of the Sun-Earth system that directly affect life and society. The Living With a Star program is managed by the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. APL manages Parker Solar Probe for NASA and designed, built and operates the mission.
NASA’s Parker Solar Probe completed its 21st close approach to the Sun on Sept. 30, equaling its own distance record by coming within about 4.51 million miles (7.26 million kilometers) of the solar surface.
The close approach (known as perihelion) occurred at 5:15 UTC — or 12:15 a.m. EDT — with Parker Solar Probe moving 394,700 miles per hour (635,300 kilometers per hour) around the Sun, again matching its own record. The spacecraft checked in on Oct. 3 with mission operators at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland — where the spacecraft was also designed and built — with a beacon tone indicating it was in good health and all systems were operating normally.
Parker Solar Probe’s 21st orbit included a perihelion that brought the spacecraft within 4.51 million miles of the Sun. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben
Perihelion marked the midpoint in the mission’s 21st solar encounter, which began Sept. 25 and runs through Oct. 5.
This week’s close approach marked the last time Parker will fly around the Sun at this distance and speed before it makes the first of its three final, closest approaches of its primary mission on Dec. 24. At that point, with its orbit shaped by the mission’s final Venus gravity assist-flyby on Nov. 6, the spacecraft will zip just 3.8 million miles from the solar surface, moving about 430,000 miles per hour.
By Michael Buckley
Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory
NASA’s Parker Solar Probe executed a short maneuver on Aug. 26 that kept the spacecraft on course for the mission’s seventh and final planned Venus flyby on Nov. 6.
Operating on preprogrammed commands, Parker fired its small directional thrusters for about 17 seconds, changing its velocity by less than a mile per hour, and setting its trajectory some 386 miles (593 kilometers) closer to a targeted approach point about 240 miles (380 kilometers) above the Venusian surface. The mission operations team at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, where Parker was designed and built, monitored the activity through NASA’s Deep Space Network antenna station in Goldstone, California.
Yanping Guo, Parker Solar Probe mission design and navigation manager at APL, said precise positioning and timing are critical to the Venus flybys, in which Parker uses the planet’s gravity to tighten its orbit around the Sun. The upcoming flyby will be closer to Venus than the previous six gravity assists, and the final piece of a mission design that will swing Parker to within just 3.8 million miles of the Sun’s surface — the closest the spacecraft will come to our star.
During Parker Solar Probe’s fourth flyby of Venus, the spacecraft’s WISPR instrument captured these images, strung into a video, showing the nightside surface of the planet. Credits: NASA/APL/NRL
“Venus 7 is the critical gravity assist for Parker Solar Probe to eventually achieve its minimum solar distance,” Guo said, adding that the team will likely conduct an additional, smaller maneuver in late October or early November — after the mission’s Sept. 30 solar encounter — to shore up the spacecraft’s path to Venus.
After flying by Venus, Parker will make the first of at least three planned passes at that unprecedented distance — while whizzing past the Sun at a record 430,000 miles per hour — on Dec. 24, 2024.
Parker Solar Probe is currently in its 21st orbit, about to begin a science encounter that culminates on Sept. 30, 2024, with a close approach (known as perihelion) of about 4.51 million miles (7.26 million kilometers) from the solar surface.
NASA’s Parker Solar Probe completed its 20th close approach to the Sun on June 30, 2024, matching its own distance record by coming about 4.51 million miles (7.26 million kilometers) from the solar surface.
The close approach (known as perihelion) occurred at 3:47 UTC (11:47 p.m. EDT on June 29), with Parker Solar Probe moving 394,736 miles per hour (635,266 kilometers per hour) around the Sun, again matching its own record. On July 2, the spacecraft checked in with mission operators at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland (where the spacecraft was also designed and built), with a beacon tone indicating it was in good health and all systems were operating normally.
Parker Solar Probe’s 20th orbit included a perihelion that brought the spacecraft within 4.51 million miles of the Sun. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben
The milestone also marked the midpoint in the mission’s 20th solar encounter, which began June 25 and continues through July 5.
Parker will fly around the Sun at the same distance and speed one more time this year — on Sept. 30 — before making the first of its three final planned closest approaches on Dec. 24. At that point, with Parker’s orbit shaped by the mission’s final Venus gravity assist-flyby on Nov. 6, the spacecraft will zoom just 3.8 million miles from the solar surface, moving about 430,000 miles per hour.
By Michael Buckley Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory
NASA’s Parker Solar Probe completed its 19th close approach to the Sun on March 30, matching its own distance record by coming about 4.51 million miles (7.26 million kilometers) from the solar surface.
The close approach (known as perihelion) occurred at 2:21 UTC (10:21 EDT), March 29, with Parker Solar Probe moving 394,736 miles per hour (635,266 kilometers per hour) around the Sun – again equaling its own record. The spacecraft checked in on April 2 with mission operators at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland, where the spacecraft was also designed and built, with a beacon tone indicating it was in good health and all systems were operating normally.
Parker Solar Probe’s 19th orbit included a perihelion that brought the spacecraft within 4.51 million miles of the Sun. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben
The milestone also marked the midway point in the mission’s 19th solar encounter, which began March 25 and continued through April 4.
Parker is still on track to make its closest approach on Dec. 24. At that point, with its orbit shaped by the mission’s final Venus gravity assist-flyby on Nov. 6, the spacecraft will zoom just 3.8 million miles from the solar surface, moving about 430,000 miles per hour.
By Michael Buckley Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory
NASA’s Parker Solar Probe completed its 18th close approach to the Sun on Dec. 28, 2023, matching its own distance record by skimming just about 4.51 million miles (7.26 million kilometers) from the solar surface.
The close approach (known as perihelion) occurred at 7:56 p.m. EST, with Parker Solar Probe traveling at 394,736 miles per hour (635,266 kilometers per hour) around the Sun – also matching the speed record for the 17th solar encounter. The milestone also marked the midway point in the mission’s 18th solar encounter, which began Dec. 24, 2023, and continued through Jan. 2, 2024.
Parker Solar Probe’s 18th orbit included a perihelion that brought the spacecraft within 4.51 million miles of the Sun. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben
The spacecraft entered the encounter in good health, with all systems operating normally. Parker Solar Probe checked back in with mission operators at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland – where the spacecraft was also designed and built – by sending a status beacon tone on Jan. 5.
By Michael Buckley Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory
NASA’s Parker Solar Probe completed its 17th close approach to the Sun on Sept. 27, 2023, breaking its own distance record by skimming just 4.51 million miles (7.26 million kilometers) from the solar surface.
Set up by a gravity-assist flyby of Venus on Aug. 21, the close approach (known as perihelion) occurred at 7:28 p.m. EDT, with Parker Solar Probe moving 394,736 miles per hour (635,266 kilometers per hour) around the Sun – another record. The milestone also marked the midway point in the mission’s 17th solar encounter, which began Sept. 22 and continues through Oct. 3.
Parker Solar Probe’s 17th orbit included a perihelion that brought the spacecraft within 4.51 million miles of the Sun. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben
The spacecraft entered the encounter in good health, with all systems operating normally. Parker Solar Probe is scheduled to check back in with mission operators at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory in Laurel, Maryland – where the spacecraft was also designed and built – by sending a stream of telemetry (status data) on Oct. 1.
The spacecraft will transmit science data from the encounter – largely covering the properties, structure, and behavior of the solar wind as it launches off the Sun – back to Earth from Oct. 4 – 19.
By Michael Buckley Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory
On Sept. 5, 2022, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe soared gracefully through one of the most powerful coronal mass ejections (CMEs) ever recorded – not only an impressive feat of engineering, but a huge boon for the scientific community. Parker’s journey through the CME is helping to prove a 20-year-old theory about the interaction of CMEs with interplanetary dust, with implications for space weather predictions. The results were recently published in The Astrophysical Journal.
A 2003 paper theorized that CMEs may interact with interplanetary dust in orbit around our star and even carry the dust outward. CMEs are immense eruptions from the Sun’s outer atmosphere, or corona, that help drive space weather, which can endanger satellites, disrupt communications and navigation technologies, and even knock out power grids on Earth. Learning more about how these events interact with interplanetary dust could help scientists better predict how quickly CMEs could travel from the Sun to Earth, forecasting when the planet could see their impact.
Parker has now observed this phenomenon for the first time.
“These interactions between CMEs and dust were theorized two decades ago, but had not been observed until Parker Solar Probe viewed a CME act like a vacuum cleaner, clearing the dust out of its path,” said Guillermo Stenborg, an astrophysicist at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, and lead author on the paper. APL built and operates the spacecraft.
This dust is made up of tiny particles from asteroids, comets, and even planets, and is present throughout the solar system. A type of faint glow called zodiacal light, sometimes visible before sunrise or after sunset, is one manifestation of the cloud of interplanetary dust.
The CME displaced the dust all the way out to about 6 million miles from the Sun – about one-sixth of the distance between the Sun and Mercury – but it was replenished almost immediately by the interplanetary dust floating through the solar system.
In-situ observations from Parker were critical to this discovery, because characterizing dust dynamics in the wake of CMEs is challenging from a distance. According to the researchers, Parker’s observations could also provide insight into related phenomena lower down in the corona, such as coronal dimming caused by low-density areas in the corona that often appear after CMEs erupt.
Scientists observed the interaction between the CME and dust as decreased brightness in images from Parker’s Wide-field Imager for Solar Probe (WISPR) camera. This is because interplanetary dust reflects light, amplifying brightness where the dust is present.
Parker Solar Probe’s Wide Field Imagery for Solar Probe (WISPR) camera observes as the spacecraft passes through a massive coronal mass ejection on Sept. 5, 2022. Coronal mass ejections are immense eruptions of plasma and energy from the Sun’s corona that drive space weather. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Naval Research Lab
To locate this occurrence of decreased brightness, the team had to compute the average background brightness of WISPR images across several similar orbits – sifting out normal brightness variations that occur due to solar streamers and other changes in the solar corona.
“Parker has orbited the Sun four times at the same distance, allowing us to compare data from one pass to the next very well,” Stenborg said. “By removing brightness variations due to coronal shifts and other phenomena, we were able to isolate the variations caused by dust depletion.”
Because scientists have only observed this effect in connection with the Sept. 5 event, Stenborg and the team theorize that dust depletion may only occur with the most powerful CMEs.
Nevertheless, studying the physics behind this interaction may have implications for space weather prediction. Scientists are just starting to understand that interplanetary dust affects the shape and speed of a CME. But more studies are needed to understand these interactions better.
Parker completed its sixth Venus flyby, using the planet’s gravity to sling itself even closer to the Sun for its next five close approaches. This occurs as the Sun itself is approaching solar maximum, the period in the Sun’s 11-year cycle when sunspots and solar activity are most abundant. As the Sun’s activity increases, scientists hope to have the opportunity to see more of these rare phenomena and explore how they might affect our Earth environment and the interplanetary medium.
Parker Solar Probe was developed as part of NASA’s Living With a Star program to explore aspects of the Sun-Earth system that directly affect life and society. The Living With a Star program is managed by the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, for NASA’s Science Mission Directorate in Washington. APL designed, built, and operates the spacecraft and manages the mission for NASA.
By Ashley Hume Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory
