Parker Solar Probe Completes 15th Close Flyby of the Sun on St. Patrick's Day

NASA's Parker Solar Probe will make its 15th close approach to the sun, or perihelion, on St. Patrick's Day, coming within 5.3 million miles of the sun's surface. The spacecraft's mission is to investigate why the corona is hundreds of times hotter than the photosphere below it. The Parker Solar Probe is equipped with a carbon-composite shield that keeps its scientific payload at room temperature even at perihelion. The probe's planned mission includes 24 close approaches to the sun before it ends in 2025, and it will eventually come as close as 3.8 million miles from the photosphere.