NASA’s daring Parker Solar Probe plunged deeper into the sun’s atmosphere than any human-made object before. While performing this nail-biting closest approach to the sun’s surface, a tense silence fell over mission control as contact was briefly lost.

NASA's Parker Solar Probe hurtled through the sizzling solar atmosphere and passed within a record-breaking 3.8 million miles of the sun's surface.

NASA has confirmed that its Parker Solar Probe is safe and fully operational after its Christmas Eve close encounter with the Sun. On December 24, 2024, the robotic probe came within a record 3.8 million miles (6.