NASA’s Parker Solar Probe has successfully completed its second close approach to the Sun, called perihelion, and is now entering the outbound phase of its second solar orbit. At 6:40 p.m. EDT on April 4, 2019, the probe passed within 15 million miles of our star, and sent back beacon status “A” throughout its second perihelion, indicating that it’s operating well and all instruments are collecting science data. Read more for a video and additional information.
“The spacecraft is performing as designed, and it was great to be able to track it during this entire perihelion. We’re looking forward to getting the science data down from this encounter in the coming weeks so the science teams can continue to explore the mysteries of the corona and the Sun,” said Nickalaus Pinkine, Parker Solar Probe mission operations manager at APL.
