How’s the Parker Solar Probe doing? Are there any updates that we should be aware of?
The Parker Solar Probe is doing great. We are going through our fifth encounter and recently we were the closest we’ve ever been to the Sun. After a period of five days where we could not communicate with the spacecraft, it sent us a signal that it’s healthy and it’s doing what it’s supposed to do. In terms of science, it’s just amazing. Whenever the spacecraft gets closer to the Sun, we are learning new things that we’ve never seen before.
What is the major mystery surrounding the Sun and its corona that astronomers are desperately trying to solve, and are hoping the Parker Solar Probe will help shed light on?
There are a few phenomena that were discovered decades ago, but we are still struggling to understand. I think the one that is most puzzling is what we call the ‘coronal heating problem’. The corona, which is the outermost layer of the solar atmosphere, is 300-times hotter than the solar surface. And we know that all the energy is coming from inside the Sun, so in a way it’s counter-intuitive that the source is cooler than the environment around it. But the Parker Solar Probe is giving us clues and hints as to what might be causing excess heating there.
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the {{IssueName}} edition of {{MagazineName}}.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
MYSTERIES OF THE UNI WHERE ARE ALL THE SPIRAL GALAXIES?
There are far fewer spiral galaxies than elliptical ones in the Supergalactic Plane, and scientists are keen to discover why
ZOMBIE STARS
+10 OTHER TERRIFYING SPACE OBJECTS
HOW TO BEAT LIGHT POLLUTION
Thought it was impossible to observe the wonders of the night sky from towns and cities? Think again. Follow our tips and tricks on successfully observing through sky glow
15 STUNNING STAR CLUSTERS
These beautiful stellar groupings are spattered across the cosmos
Eileen Collins "It was a difficult mission...we were the first to see Mir"
Having served as both the first female pilot and first female commander of NASA's Space Shuttle, Collins boosted the involvement of women in space exploration to a whole new level
MARS LEAKS FASTER WHEN IT'S CLOSER TO THE SUN
The Red Planet has lost enough water to space to form a global ocean hundreds of kilometres deep
FUTURE TECH KANKOH-MARU
This ambitious reusable spacecraft will be capable of taking 50 people to and from orbit
THE FINAL FRONTIER
Beyond the reach of the Sun is a fascinating region of the cosmos that were only just beginning to explore
A long-lost moon could explain Mars' weird shape and extreme terrain
A long-lost moon could explain why Mars is so different from the other rocky planets in the Solar System. Today Mars has two tiny moons.
A sprinkling of cosmic dust may have helped kick-start life on Earth
Cosmic dust may have helped kick-start life on Earth. New findings challenge a widely held assumption that this wasn't a plausible explanation.