The Parker Solar Probe Just Became the Fastest Spacecraft, Ever

From NASA and the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab:

Posted on 10/30/2018 05:56:58

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At about 10:54 p.m. EDT, Parker Solar Probe surpassed 153,454 miles per hour — as calculated by the mission team — making it the fastest-ever human-made object relative to the Sun. This breaks the record set by the German-American Helios 2 mission in April 1976.

Parker Solar Probe will repeatedly break its own records, achieving a top speed of about 430,000 miles per hour in 2024.

Illustration of Parker Solar Probe approaching the Sun.

Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins APL/Steve Gribben
High-Res Image