NASA’s Super‑Fast Space Probe Hits a New Sun‑Record
On Monday (Oct 29), NASA announced that its Parker Solar Probe has gone so close to the Sun that it tops every previous human‑made object’s record. It didn’t just jump the distance bar; it shattered it.
Past the 26.55‑Million‑Mile Benchmark
At about 1 : 04 PM EDT (1704 GMT) on Oct 29, 2018 the probe beat the old 26.55‑million‑mile mark. That beat the record set by the 1976 Helios 2 spacecraft. The Parker probe, worth a cool $1.5 billion (S$2.08 billion), left Earth in August on a mission to peel back the curtain on the Sun’s violent storms.
Its job? Execute 24 flybys that bring it cheek‑to‑cheek with the blazing star, nudging it as close as possible while gathering data that could protect lives on Earth.
Speed Demon Status
- NASA says the probe will also break the fastest‑hundred‑so‑fast speed record coming Sunday (Oct 29) at about 10 : 54 PM EDT (0254 GMT).
- That record—153,454 miles (246,960 km) per hour—was set by Helios 2 back in April 1976.
Parker’s very first scorching‑sun encounter is slated for Oct 31, but it’s the 2024 visit that will truly demonstrate how close it can get: just 3.83 million miles from the Sun’s surface.
Why It Matters
Knowing how the Sun throws off solar storms can help us shield satellites, power grids, and even our own phones. NASA’s probe is leaving no stone—or solar flare—unturned.
Key Takeaway
Thanks to the ingenuity behind the Parker Solar Probe, humanity not only gazes at the Sun but walks in its heat—a record that will dwarf all earlier comets of cosmic ambition.