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November 4, 2018 | 
Written by Sarah Frazier
Goddard Space Flight Center of NASA
<img data-attachment-id = "85503" data-permalink = "http://www.clarksvilleonline.com/2011/08/05/salt-water-may-flow-on-mars/nasa-2/" data -orig-file = "http://www.clarksvilleonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/NASA.jpg" data-orig-size = "200,165" data-comments-opening = "1" data- image-meta = "{" aperture ":" 0 "," credit ":" "," camera ":" "," caption ":" "," created_timestamp ":" 0 "," copyright ":" " , "focal_length": "0", "iso": "0", "shutter_speed": "0", "title": ""} "data-image-title =" NASA – National Aviation Administration and space "data-image -description ="
NASA – logo – National Administration of Aeronautics and Space
"data-medium-file =" http://www.clarksvilleonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/NASA.jpg "data-large-file =" http://www.clarksvilleonline.com/wp -content / uploads / 2011/08 / NASA.jpg "class =" alignleft full-size wp-image-85503″ title=”NASA – National Aeronautics and Space Administration "src =" http://www.clarksvilleonline.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/NASA.jpg "alt =" NASA – National Aeronautics and Space Administration "width =" 200 "height =" 165 "/>Greenbelt, MD – The NASA Parker solar probe now holds the record for the closest approach to the sun by a man-made object. The spacecraft broke the current record of 26.55 million miles from the Sun's surface on 29 October 2018 at 12:04 CET as calculated by the Parker Solar Probe team.
The previous record of closest solar approach was established by the German-American Helios 2 satellite in April 1976. As Parker NASA's solar probe mission progresses, the spacecraft will repeatedly beat its own records, with a final close approach to 3.83 million miles of the Sun's surface expected in 2024.
"It's been only 78 days since Parker Solar Probe was launched, and we are now closer to our star than any other spacecraft in history," said Andy Driesman, Project Manager, Laboratory Applied Physics Johns Hopkins of Laurel, Maryland. "It's a moment of pride for the team, even if we stay focused on our first solar encounter, which starts on October 31st."
Parker Solar Probe is also expected to break the record for the fastest spacecraft traveling from the Sun on October 29 at around 9:54 pm CT. The current heliocentric speed record is 153,454 miles at the time, established by Helios 2 in April 1976.
The Parker Solar Probe team periodically measures the precise speed and position of the spacecraft using NASA's Deep Space Network (DSN). The DSN sends a signal to the spacecraft, which then retransmits it, allowing the team to determine the speed and position of the spacecraft according to the timing and characteristics of the signal.
Parker Solar Probe speed and position were calculated from DSN measurements taken up to October 24th. The team then used this information, as well as known orbital forces, to calculate the speed and position of the spacecraft from that point.
Parker's solar probe will begin its first solar encounter on October 31, continuing to fly closer and closer to the Sun's surface until it reaches its first perihelion – the closest point to the Sun – around 9:28 PM November 5th. The probe will face brutal heat and radiation conditions, while providing humanity with closer observations of an unprecedented star and helping us understand the phenomena that have puzzled scientists for decades.
These observations will add essential knowledge to NASA's efforts to understand the Sun, where changing conditions can propagate in the solar system, affecting the Earth and other worlds.
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Earth, Greenbelt MD, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory, NASA, NASA Deep Space Network, NASA Goddard Spaceflight Center, NASA Parker Solar Probe, NASA National Administration. aeronautics and space, Sarah Frazier, Star, Sun
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