Spacecraft
Parker Solar Probe
NASA · launched 2018-08-12
Parker Solar Probe flies through the Sun's outer corona, using seven Venus flybys to shrink its orbit. Since December 2024 it has passed about 6.1 million km from the solar surface, closer than any other spacecraft.
Mission timeline
- 2018-10-03: Venus flyby 1
- 2018-11-06: First perihelion, 0.1659 AU
- 2019-12-26: Venus flyby 2
- 2020-07-11: Venus flyby 3
- 2021-02-20: Venus flyby 4
- 2021-10-16: Venus flyby 5
- 2023-08-21: Venus flyby 6
- 2024-11-06: Venus flyby 7
- 2024-12-24: Closest perihelion, 0.0459 AU from the Sun's centre
Trajectory: JPL Horizons.