Scientists and space organizations have been wanting to study the Sun to learn about the star’s composition and its corona, which is another name for its atmosphere, for the longest time. Although researchers have estimated information about the star that powers our solar system, they made some new discoveries recently, thanks to NASA’s Parker Solar Probe that “touched the Sun” for the first time in humanity’s history.
Previously, scientists estimated that this dividing line was somewhere between 4.3 and 8.6 million miles above the Sun’s surface, which is also called the Photosphere. The discovery by the solar probe revealed that the line is not uniform and has peaks and valleys. At its closest, the Parker Solar Probe was able to reach 6.5 million miles above the Sun’s surface.
The Parker Solar Probe will continue to monitor the Sun by leveraging Venus flybys, which act as slingshots to get the spacecraft inside the Sun’s corona. The next Venus flyby for the Parker Solar Probe is scheduled for 2023, and it will take it to 3.83 million miles above the Sun’s surface.
