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WORLD NASA's Deep Space Network is a global system of antennas located in three places: California (USA), Madrid (Spain), and Canberra (Australia). These antennas communicate with spacecraft far from Earth. Girish Linganna Updated : Dec 24, 2024, 10:22 AM IST After nearly a year of preparation, NASA's Parker Solar Probe is ready to make history by getting closer to the Sun than any spacecraft ever has. Everything is set, and the mission is ready to move forward. The fastest spacecraft ever built has sent a signal to the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (JHAPL,located in Laurel,Maryland USA) through NASA's Deep Space Network, confirming that all its systems are working properly. NASA's Deep Space Network is a global system of antennas located in three places: California (USA), Madrid (Spain), and Canberra (Australia). These antennas communicate with spacecraft far from Earth. NASA's Parker Solar Probe aims to get closer to the Sun than any spacecraft in history, coming within 3.8 million miles (6.1 million kilometers) of its surface. During this flyby, the Parker Solar Probe will get seven times closer to the Sun than any spacecraft has ever been before. For example, the Parker Solar Probe will get as close as 3.8 million miles (6.1 million kilometers) to the Sun, while the previous closest spacecraft, Helios 2, came within 27 million miles (43 million kilometers) . This means Parker is seven times closer. Nick Pinkine, the mission operations manager for the Parker Solar Probe at JHUAPL, said that no human-made object has ever traveled this close to a star before. This means Parker will be sending back information from a completely unexplored region. The Parker Solar Probe will make its closest approach to the Sun, called "perihelion," on Christmas Eve this Tuesday at 6:53 AM EST (5:23 PM IST). During this time, the spacecraft will be out of contact with NASA. Perihelion means the point in the orbit of a planet, comet, or spacecraft where it is closest to the Sun. Three days (27th December) after Christmas, the Parker Solar Probe will send a signal to NASA to share an update on its condition after completing its close approach to the Sun, where it navigated through the Sun's extreme conditions. The spacecraft and its scientific instruments are protected by a heat shield. This shield is 8 feet wide and 4.5 inches thick, made from carbon foam. It is placed on the side of the spacecraft that faces the Sun and is built to withstand temperatures as high as 2,500°F (1,377°C). According to JHUAPL, just one yard (about 0.9 meters) behind the heat shield, where the main part of the spacecraft is located, the temperature is almost as cool as room temperature. Nick Pinkine added that all of Parker's systems must work perfectly to collect data from this intense and active region near a star—a place no spacecraft has ever gone before. Unraveling the Sun's Mysteries: Exploring the Ultra-Hot Corona The Parker Solar Probe is expected to pass through streams of solar plasma and may even enter active areas of the Sun. Its mission is to study the Sun’s outer atmosphere, called the corona, which is an extremely hot region. Scientists are especially interested in the corona because it’s much hotter—hundreds of times hotter—than the Sun’s surface, and they want to understand why this happens. Studying Solar Flares Up Close The Sun recently hit the peak of its 11-year activity cycle just two months ago. During this time, it becomes more active and unpredictable. Scientists are now hoping the Sun will release a solar flare—a sudden burst of energy—that happens to pass through the same area of space as NASA's Parker Solar Probe. This would be a rare opportunity to study the solar flare up close and learn more about how the Sun behaves during its most active phase. Rather than harming the spacecraft, a solar flare passing near the Parker Solar Probe would actually be a huge scientific opportunity. It would allow the probe to collect rare and valuable information about how the Sun's charged particles are sped up to almost the speed of light. Scientists could also use this data to better understand how space weather works. These findings wouldn't just help us learn more about our own Sun but could also give us clues about how other stars in the universe behave. "Design and Structure of the Solar-Protected Spacecraft" The main body of the spacecraft, called the spacecraft bus, is shaped like a hexagonal prism. It has two large solar panel wings that extend out from near the middle of the bus, and a cone-shaped heat shield, known as the Thermal Protection System (TPS), on the side facing the Sun. The spacecraft has a total weight of 685 kilograms, which includes 130 kilograms of fuel. The bus itself is 3 meters long and 1 meter wide, while the heat shield at the front is 8 feet wide. The TPS is made of a special carbon composite material and is 4.5 inches thick,designed to protect the spacecraft from the Sun's intense heat. Racing to the Sun: Parker Solar Probe's Incredible Journey The Parker Solar Probe, launched in 2018, was designed to study the Sun’s outer atmosphere and help us better understand its behavior. The spacecraft is traveling at an incredible speed of about 692,000 kilometers per hour. It has already completed 21 close approaches to the Sun and seven flybys of Venus, according to a report by Parker Solar Space. Future of the Mission According to reports, two more close approaches to the Sun are scheduled for March 22 and June 19, 2025. Plans for the spacecraft's path and future operations will be decided after its main mission ends. The Parker Solar Probe’s discoveries aim to answer important questions about how the Sun works, helping us better understand solar activity and its effects. (The author of this article is a Defence, Aerospace & Political Analyst based in Bengaluru. He is also Director of ADD Engineering Components, India, Pvt. Ltd, a subsidiary of ADD Engineering GmbH, Germany. You can reach him at: girishlinganna@gmail.com) (Disclaimer: The views expressed above are the author's own and do not reflect those of None
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