A NASA spacecraft is about to offer astronomers an epic early Christmas current with the closest ever flyby of the solar on Dec. 24, however in the event you’re questioning precisely when the bold photo voltaic encounter will happen, don’t fret. We have you lined.
The NASA spacecraft, known as the Parker Photo voltaic Probe, is on target for what will likely be a record-setting shut flyby of the solar on Christmas Eve, when it’ll fly via the star’s outer environment at 6:53 a.m. EST (1153 GMT) and go inside 3.8 million miles (6.1 million kilometers) of the star’s floor The flyby is the ultimate trial for the Parker Photo voltaic Probe, which has made a collection of ever-closer swings by the star (and 7 flybys of Venus) on its mission to know the solar like by no means earlier than.
“No human-made object has ever handed this near a star, so Parker will actually be returning knowledge from uncharted territory,” stated Nick Pinkine, Parker Photo voltaic Probe mission operations supervisor on the Johns Hopkins Utilized Physics Laboratory (JHUAPL) in Maryland, in a statement. “We’re excited to listen to again from the spacecraft when it swings again across the solar.”
What time will NASA’s Parker Photo voltaic Probe fly via the solar?
As talked about above, the Parker Photo voltaic Probe’s closest solar flyby will happen on Tuesday, Dec. 24, at 6:53 a.m. EST (1153 GMT). At that precise time, the spacecraft will likely be at its closest level it’ll ever be to the solar: 3.8 million miles.
The Christmas Eve flyby will mark Parker’s twenty second shut encounter with the solar since its launch in 2018 (the primary time it “touched the solar” was in 2021). The spacecraft will likely be flying at about 430,000 mph (692,000 kph), a mind-blowing pace which it reached by accelerating up by way of gravity assists from its seven Venus flybys, most not too long ago in November.
In the course of the Dec. 24 solar flyby, the Parker Photo voltaic Probe will fly via the solar’s corona, its super-hot outer environment, to check precisely why the area is so sizzling and different photo voltaic phenomena. The spacecraft has already set a brand new file because the closest human-built object to fly so near the solar, and is flying seven occasions nearer to the star than some other spacecraft.
Can I watch the Parker Photo voltaic Probe solar flyby on-line?
No, you will be unable to look at the Parker Photo voltaic Probe’s solar flyby reside on-line.
Not like NASA rocket launches and Mars landings, the solar flyby won’t be webcast or livestreamed in actual time. As a substitute, NASA and the Parker Photo voltaic Probe mission crew are offering updates on the spacecraft’s standing on-line in a number of locations.
You’ll be able to comply with NASA’s Parker Solar Probe mission blog (the company’s mission website can be a superb place for particulars) or discover updates on the JHUAPL Parker Solar Probe site. You can too discover updates on NASA’s @NASASun X page.
Whilst you cannot watch the Parker Photo voltaic Probe’s flyby reside, you’ll be able to monitor the spacecraft’s progress on-line. NASA’s Eyes On The Solar System Parker Solar Probe page permits customers to comply with the spacecraft and see the place it’s any any given time.
JHUAPL additionally has an amazing walkthrough of the Parker Photo voltaic Probe solar flyby called “A Star Explored,” that serves as an amazing information to the flyby and mission.
How sizzling will Parker Photo voltaic Probe get throughout its solar flyby?
Christmas Eve could also be a superb time to roast chestnuts on the hearth (or possibly toast marshmallows), however Parker Photo voltaic Probe scientists have constructed their spacecraft to keep away from getting burned by the solar.
Throughout its Dec. 24 flyby, the Parker Photo voltaic Probe is predicted to expertise temperatures of as much as 1,800 levels Fahrenheit (980 levels Celsius) because it swings by the solar. However the spacecraft can take the warmth.
The Parker Photo voltaic Probe’s spacecraft elements and science devices are protected by warmth defend that’s 8 ft extensive (2.4 meters) and 4.5 inches (11 centimeters) thick. The defend, manufactured from a sort of carbon foam, is positioned on the sun-facing facet of the spacecraft and is designed to resist temperatures of as much as 2,500 F (1,377 C).
“One yard behind that, the place the physique of the spacecraft resides, it’s virtually room temperature,” JHUAPL mission officers wrote in an overview. “And all its techniques might want to work completely for Parker to collect knowledge from this dynamic atmosphere close to a star the place no spacecraft has dared journey.”
And in case you are questioning concerning the max temperature fo the solar, our information on how sizzling is the solar is can reply these questions.
How lengthy is Parker Photo voltaic Probe’s solar flyby?
This Christmas Eve solar flyby is fairly quick. (What else would you anticipate from a spacecraft touring at 430,000 mph?) However for the Parker Photo voltaic Probe mission crew, the precise encounter will final over every week.
“That is one instance of NASA’s daring missions, doing one thing that nobody else has ever performed earlier than to reply longstanding questions on our universe,” stated Arik Posner, Parker Photo voltaic Probe program scientist at NASA Headquarters in Washington, within the Dec. 20 assertion. “We will not wait to obtain that first standing replace from the spacecraft and begin receiving the science knowledge within the coming weeks.”
This is a rundown of when to anticipate updates from the Parker Photo voltaic Probe.
Friday, Dec. 20
For Parker’s mission controllers, the encounter started in earnest on Friday, Dec. 20. That is when the Parker Photo voltaic Probe despatched its ultimate sign to Earth indicating it was starting the flyby.
“Mission operators on the Johns Hopkins Utilized Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, acquired a beacon transmission from Parker, via NASA’s Deep Area Community advanced in Canberra, Australia, at 7:20 p.m. EST at the moment indicating all spacecraft techniques had been working usually,” NASA wrote in a update on Dec. 20.
That is the final NASA and JHUAPL scientists will hear from the Parker Photo voltaic Probe till after the flyby, Area.com has realized.
Tuesday, Dec. 24
That is Parker Photo voltaic Flyby day. The mission crew will likely be out of contact with the spacecraft, however it must be executing its programmed actions to carry out the flyby.
On the time of the flyby, be looking out for a possible video or assertion launch from NASA and JHUAPL mission crew members to mark the occasion.
Friday, Dec. 27
Solely on Friday, Dec. 27, do NASA and JHUAPL mission controllers anticipate to listen to their first sign from the Parker Photo voltaic Probe after its flyby.
Do not anticipate a lot, like new images or solar movies. This examine in from the Parker Photo voltaic Probe is predicted at midnight and will likely be a beacon solely to point the spacecraft made it via the flyby and embrace some standing on its “basic well being.”
Thursday, Jan. 1, 2025
Blissful New 12 months! To ring in 2025, the Parker Photo voltaic Probe is predicted to ship its first telemetry and “housekeeping” knowledge again to its mission operations heart at JHUAPL.
The timing of this tag up from Parker is fluid as it’ll depend upon the place the probe is in its path across the solar, JHUAPL officers informed Area.com. Nevertheless, the contact right here will once more be a well being checkup for Parker, permitting its mission crew to examine the spacecraft’s techniques and instrument well being, in addition to if its knowledge recorders are full from the flyby.
The primary science knowledge downloads from Parker (like pictures or different observations) are usually not anticipated till late January, in response to JHUAPL.
What occurs after the Parker Photo voltaic Probe’s solar flyby?
The Christmas Eve photo voltaic flyby of the Parker Photo voltaic Probe could also be its closest solar flyby of its mission, however it will not be the final.
In all, the $1.5 billion Parker Photo voltaic Probe mission is designed to make at the least 24 shut flybys of the solar. This Dec. 24 flyby is No. 22. After this encounter, the spacecraft is predicted prime make at the least two extra solar flybys earlier than its seven-year major mission ends in 2025.
The following solar flyby by Parker will likely be on March 22, 2025. The ultimate scheduled flyby, known as “Perihelion 24,” will likely be on June 19, 2025. Each of these future flybys are anticipated to strategy the solar from an identical distance because the Dec. 24 occasion.
“The spacecraft will stay on this orbit for the rest of its major mission, finishing two extra perihelia at about the identical distance and pace — a file 430,000 miles (692,018 kilometers) per hour — in March and June 2025,” JUAPL officers wrote in November after the ultimate Venus flyby. “After that, the crew will determine whether or not to maintain the spacecraft in that orbit or reposition it.”
