NASA’s Parker Solar Probe has captured the closest-ever images of the Sun, taken from a mere 6.2 million kilometers (3.85 million miles) above its surface. The data collected provides crucial insights into the solar wind – the stream of electrically charged particles propagating through the Solar System – and its influence on space weather, which can impact Earth.
“The Parker Solar Probe has once again transported us into the dynamic atmosphere of our closest star,” stated Nicky Fox, Associate Administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “We are witnessing the emergence of space weather threats to Earth with our own eyes, not just through models. This new data will significantly enhance our space weather forecasts, helping to safeguard astronauts and protect technology on Earth and throughout the Solar System.”
The probe initiated its closest approach yet on December 24, 2024, flying within 6.1 million kilometers (3.8 million miles) of the Sun’s surface. Skimming the star’s outer atmosphere, the solar corona, it gathered data using its onboard scientific instruments.
New images from the probe’s Wide-Field Imager for Solar Probe (WISPR) reveal the corona and the solar wind – the constant stream of charged particles emanating from the Sun. This wind has wide-ranging effects throughout the Solar System, including generating auroras on Earth and causing potentially dangerous interference with power grids, radio communications, and satellites.
The WISPR images offer an unprecedented view into the solar wind’s behavior just after its release from the corona. Specifically, they show the critical boundary where the Sun’s magnetic field direction flips from north to south. Furthermore, the images capture, in high resolution for the first time, the collision of multiple Coronal Mass Ejections (CMEs). These massive explosions of charged particles are a key driver of space weather.
When CMEs collide, their trajectories can alter, making it harder to predict their final destination. Their merging can also accelerate charged particles and tangle magnetic fields, potentially amplifying their dangerous effects on astronauts, satellites in space, and technology on Earth. The footage represents the closest visual record of the Sun ever obtained.
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