The Parker Solar Probe is about to embark on an historic mission that will take it closer to the sun than any other spacecraft before it. On September 2, 2023, the spacecraft will be launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida on a seven year mission to explore the sun’s atmosphere and the origins of the solar wind. The spacecraft will fly within 6.2 million kilometres of the sun’s surface—closer than any other spacecraft has ever gone—and will experience temperatures of over 1,300°C and a solar radiation intensity more than 500 times greater than on Earth. With its heat shield made of a 4.5 inch thick carbon-composite foam, the Parker Solar Probe will be able to survive the immense heat and radiation as it passes through the sun’s atmosphere. This mission will provide us with unprecedented insight into the sun and its effects on our solar system.

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source: Phys.org