Spacecraft Touched the Sun but Why isn’t it Melting?”
NASA’s Parker Solar Probe, which was launched in 2018 to explore the sun’s corona, made contact with the sun’s magnetic fields on April 28, 2021. The spacecraft’s heat shield, composed of materials such as carbon fiber reinforced polymers and heat shield tiles,Unexpected interaction!, which do not conduct heat easily, helped it withstand the extreme heat without melting. Theories suggest that the unique design of the heat shield, carbon fiber insulation layers, and advanced insulation materials all contribute to its heat resistance. The heat shield’s ceramic white tile side, which faces the sun, undergoes a phase change and reflects heat to minimize absorption, while the probe’s carbon composite body reflects heat efficiently. Researchers continue to study the probe’s findings to better understand how it functions effectively in such high temperatures.
Spacecraft Touched the Sun but Why isn’t it Melting?”, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe, which was launched in 2018 to explore the sun’s corona, made contact with the sun’s magnetic fields on April 28, 2021. The spacecraft’s heat shield, composed of materials such as carbon fiber reinforced polymers and heat shield tiles,Unexpected interaction!, which do not conduct heat easily, helped it withstand the extreme heat without melting. Theories suggest that the unique design of the heat shield, carbon fiber insulation layers, and advanced insulation materials all contribute to its heat resistance. The heat shield’s ceramic white tile side, which faces the sun, undergoes a phase change and reflects heat to minimize absorption, while the probe’s carbon composite body reflects heat efficiently. Researchers continue to study the probe’s findings to better understand how it functions effectively in such high temperatures.
00:00:00 In this section of the YouTube video titled “Spacecraft Touched the Sun but Why isn’t it Melting?”, the discussion revolves around the historic feat of a spacecraft entering the sun’s atmosphere and the mystery of why it didn’t melt despite being in incredibly high temperatures. The scientists of the past, including Sir Arthur Eddington, noticed that light’s color and velocity seemed
00:05:00 In this section of the YouTube video titled “Spacecraft Touched the Sun but Why isn’t it Melting?”, NASA’s Parker Solar Probe, launched from the Kansas City, Missouri-based Kimera Air Force Station on August 12, 2018, with a specific mission to explore the sun’s corona and its solar wind. The probe aimed to enter the corona, which requires traveling to the sun’s closest point, 24 Mar Tennessee orbit, where each solar orb takes approximately 37 hours. The research opportunities presented in these orbitals would allow the probe to spend a total of 900 hours on the sun. Then, on April 28, 2021, NASA confirmed that the probe had indeed made contact with the sun’s magnetic fields although its heat shield was expected to be much hotter than room temperature. Many experts were surprised by this revelation as the mission’s heat shield is made of materials that do not conduct heat easily, such as carbon fiber reinforced polymers and heat shield tiles. The unique design of the heat shield, the presence of the aforementioned carbon fiber insulation layers, and advanced insulation materials used in the shields are some of the theories mentioned to explain how the Parker Solar Probe can withstand the extreme heat without melting. Researchers also observed that the heat shield’s ceramic white tile side, facing the sun, has undergone a phase change and serves as a reflector to minimize heat absorption, while the probe’s carbon composite body reflects heat efficiently. Despite these discoveries, researchers are still studying the probe’s findings to gain a deeper understanding of how it can function effectively amid such intense temperatures.
