© 2025 Connecticut Public

FCC Public Inspection Files:
WEDH · WEDN · WEDW · WEDY
WEDW-FM · WNPR · WPKT · WRLI-FM
Public Files Contact · ATSC 3.0 FAQ
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

A NASA spacecraft has flown into the sun's atmosphere for the first time in history

In this 2018 handout provided by NASA, the United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket prepares to launch with the Parker Solar Probe onboard.
Bill Ingalls/NASA
/
NASA via Getty Images
In this 2018 handout provided by NASA, the United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy rocket prepares to launch with the Parker Solar Probe onboard.

Three years after its launch, the Parker Solar Probe has finally "touched" the sun.

In April, the probe became the first known spacecraft to soar into our nearest star's upper atmosphere – known as the corona – where it sampled particles and magnetic fields, NASA announced on Tuesday.

"Not only does this milestone provide us with deeper insights into our Sun's evolution and [its] impacts on our solar system, but everything we learn about our own star also teaches us more about stars in the rest of the universe," Thomas Zurbuchen, the associate administrator for NASA's Science Mission Directorate, said in a press release.

Officials said Parker's journey into the sun's atmosphere was intended to produce discoveries that weren't possible before.

And it has: NASA scientists used Parker to conclude that some magnetic zigzigs in the solar wind, known as "switchbacks," originate on the sun's surface. In turn, the solar wind influences conditions on Earth.

Parker's first passage through the corona, which lasted a few hours, is just one of many that are planned for the mission, according to NASA. The next flyby is expected to occur in January.

The space administration said that on April 28 Parker crossed the Alfvén critical surface, where the solar wind ends and the sun's atmosphere begins.

The solar probe is able to travel so close to the sun – about 6.5 million miles away at one point – because it was constructed to withstand temperatures of more than 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit.

Because the solar wind that's blasted out from the sun's atmosphere can reach Earth, scientists say learning more about that and other solar phenomena happening 93 million miles away will help them predict extreme space weather events that can snarl telecommunications on our planet and damage satellites.


A version of this story originally appeared in the Morning Edition live blog.

Copyright 2021 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

Joe Hernandez
[Copyright 2024 NPR]

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT is an initiative from Connecticut Public, the state’s local NPR and PBS station, to elevate Latino stories and expand programming that uplifts and informs our Latino communities. Visit CTPublic.org/latino for more stories and resources. For updates, sign up for the SOMOS CONNECTICUT newsletter at ctpublic.org/newsletters.

SOMOS CONNECTICUT es una iniciativa de Connecticut Public, la emisora local de NPR y PBS del estado, que busca elevar nuestras historias latinas y expandir programación que alza y informa nuestras comunidades latinas locales. Visita CTPublic.org/latino para más reportajes y recursos. Para noticias, suscríbase a nuestro boletín informativo en ctpublic.org/newsletters.

The independent journalism and non-commercial programming you rely on every day is in danger.

If you’re reading this, you believe in trusted journalism and in learning without paywalls. You value access to educational content kids love and enriching cultural programming.

Now all of that is at risk.

Federal funding for public media is under threat and if it goes, the impact to our communities will be devastating.

Together, we can defend it. It’s time to protect what matters.

Your voice has protected public media before. Now, it’s needed again. Learn how you can protect the news and programming you depend on.

Related Content