Three years after its launch, the Parker Solar Probe made its first passage through the sun's upper atmosphere. In 2018, we got a behind-the-scenes look at how NASA engineers built the probe to survive the tremendously hot journey. | NPR

On Aug. 12, NASA successfully launched Parker Solar Probe toward the Sun, where it will fly closer than any spacecraft ever has before. This week’s 10 Things blog tells you what you need to know about how this mission will uncover new secrets about our star: https://go.nasa.gov/2NoapD2 | NASA Solar System Exploration

And there it GOES! 🚀 Here’s Parker Solar Probe’s path across the Sun in real-time images taken by the Solar Ultraviolet Imager aboard the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Geostationary Operational Environmental Satellites, or GOES-16, satellite. GOES watches the Sun to keep an eye out for solar eruptions headed our way. But it can also provide key context to help scientists better understand what Parker is measuring. Parker Solar Probe is built, managed and operated by the

We've been studying the Sun from afar for decades, and now we're going where the action is. Parker Solar Probe launches this summer to get closer to the Sun than any spacecraft has ever gone. Throughout its seven-year mission, its four suites of instruments will send back invaluable data that will help scientists answer foundational questions about the Sun, like: Why is the Sun's corona so much hotter than its surface? How is the solar wind accelerated to supersonic speeds? And what drives solar

HAPPENING RIGHT NOW: NASA’s Parker Solar Probe is making its closest-ever approach to the Sun! 🛰️ ☀️ More on this historic moment from NASA - National Aeronautics and Space Administration Associate Administrator Nicola Fox 👇 Follow Parker’s journey: go.nasa.gov/3ZS4SME #3point8 | NASA Space Alerts