Solar Probe Breaks Record as Fastest Human-Made Object Ever

The Parker Solar Probe, a NASA spacecraft, is smashing records in its ongoing exploration of the Sun. During its 17th close orbit around the Sun, the probe ventured as close as 7.26 million kilometers (4.51 million miles) from the solar surface, approximately ten times the Sun’s radius away.

As it draws nearer to the Sun, the probe’s speed significantly increases due to the gravitational forces at play. At its closest approach, the spacecraft achieved an astonishing velocity of 635,266 kilometers (394,736 miles) per hour, marking the highest speed ever recorded for a human-made object.

This remarkable event, known as the Perihelion, represents the closest point in the Solar Encounter. The 17th solar encounter of the Parker Solar Probe occurred between September 22 and October 23, with the Perihelion specifically taking place on September 27 at 7:28 p.m. EDT.

Between October 1 and October 19, the mission transmitted a continuous stream of telemetry and data collected during this encounter back to Earth. This data primarily focuses on the solar wind, the stream of charged particles emitted by the Sun. The probe daringly traverses the solar corona, the Sun’s scorching atmosphere, to study the origins of the solar wind.

To navigate its orbit, the spacecraft cleverly employs Venus’s gravity six times, gradually bringing it closer to the Sun. On one of these flybys, the Parker Solar Probe passed within 4,000 kilometers (2,500 miles) of Venus.

For its next four perihelions, the probe will maintain this orbit, orbiting the Sun every 92 days. On November 6, 2024, it will encounter Venus once more, this time passing just 317 kilometers (197 miles) from the planet’s surface. This close approach will further reduce its orbit and accelerate its speed, but this dramatic change won’t occur until Christmas Eve in 2024.

The Parker Solar Probe, a resilient spacecraft, has not only survived the extreme conditions of the solar corona but has also endured the tumultuous events known as coronal mass ejections, where explosive releases of plasma occur.