Parker Solar Probe began its fourth solar encounter on Jan. 23 at 9:00 am EST. This orbit will bring it within 11.6 million miles of the Sun.

Latest News | January 23, 2020

Parker Solar Probe Prepares for New Science, New Records on Fourth Solar Orbit
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Spacecraft Status

Current Mission: Orbit 4

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psp202001_0660.svg Parker Solar Probe Mission Trajectory and Current Position Parker Solar Probe Distance from Sun Future Orbit Past Orbit 250 200 150 100 50 0 Distance from Sun's Surface (RS) 0 500 1000 1500 2000 2500 Days from Launch Mercury Venus Earth Solar Probe Parker Heliocentric Velocity (km/s): 106.54 Distance from Sun Center (AU): 0.135 Distance from Sun's Surface (RS): 28.1 Distance from Earth (AU): 0.850 Round-Trip Light Time (hh:mm:ss): 00:14:08 28 Jan 2020 11:00:00 UTC

Countdown to next milestone

Perihelion: January 29, 2020, 09:37 UTC

Current Records Set By Parker Solar Probe

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What is Parker Solar Probe?

A scientific mission to unlock the mysteries of the Sun's corona and solar wind

A spacecraft that uses breakthrough technology and autonomy to endure heat and radiation like no other mission

A unique solar observatory that will orbit within 4 million miles of our star's surface to directly study the formation of the solar wind

The first mission named for a living scientist: Dr. Eugene Parker, who theorized the existence of the solar wind

Latest PSP News | All News

January 14, 2020

Parker Solar Probe Team Hears First Whispers of the Solar Wind’s Birth

January 8, 2020

Helene Winters Named Parker Solar Probe Project Manager

December 26, 2019

Parker Solar Probe Completes Second Venus Flyby
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