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Parker

  • This July 6, 2018 photo made available by NASA shows the Parker Solar Probe in a clean room at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., after the installation of its heat shield. NASA's Parker Solar Probe will be the first spacecraft to "touch
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    This July 6, 2018 photo made available by NASA shows the Parker Solar Probe in a clean room at Astrotech Space Operations in Titusville, Fla., after the installation of its heat shield. NASA's Parker Solar Probe will be the first spacecraft to "touch

  • In the Astrotech processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near NASA's Kennedy Space Center, on Wednesday, July 11, 2018, technicians and engineers use a crane to move NASA's Parker Solar Probe into position for mating to its third stage, built and
    2 / 13

    In the Astrotech processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near NASA's Kennedy Space Center, on Wednesday, July 11, 2018, technicians and engineers use a crane to move NASA's Parker Solar Probe into position for mating to its third stage, built and

  • In this image released by NASA, technicians and engineers perform light bar testing on NASA's Parker Solar Probe at the Astrotech processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near NASA's Kennedy Space Center, on June 5, 2018. The Parker Solar Probe w
    3 / 13

    In this image released by NASA, technicians and engineers perform light bar testing on NASA's Parker Solar Probe at the Astrotech processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near NASA's Kennedy Space Center, on June 5, 2018. The Parker Solar Probe w

  • This photo obtained August 1, 2018 courtesy of the University of Chicago shows Eugene Parker, Emeritus Professor, University of Chicago with an image of solar wind in 1997. NASA is poised to launch on August 11, 2018, a $1.5 billion spacecraft on a b
    4 / 13

    This photo obtained August 1, 2018 courtesy of the University of Chicago shows Eugene Parker, Emeritus Professor, University of Chicago with an image of solar wind in 1997. NASA is poised to launch on August 11, 2018, a $1.5 billion spacecraft on a b

  • (FILES) In this file photo taken on March 28, 2018, engineers examine the Parker Solar Probe during a media preview at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. The Parker Solar Probe will launch on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV He
    5 / 13

    (FILES) In this file photo taken on March 28, 2018, engineers examine the Parker Solar Probe during a media preview at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. The Parker Solar Probe will launch on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV He

  • United Launch Alliance (ULA) workers monitor the progress as the second stage of a ULA Delta IV Heavy is mated to the common booster core inside the Horizontal Integration Facility near Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in F
    6 / 13

    United Launch Alliance (ULA) workers monitor the progress as the second stage of a ULA Delta IV Heavy is mated to the common booster core inside the Horizontal Integration Facility near Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in F

  • In the Astrotech processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near NASA's Kennedy Space Center, on Wednesday, May 23, 2018, technicians and engineers deploy the magnetometer boom on NASA's Parker Solar Probe. The Parker Solar Probe will launch on a Un
    7 / 13

    In the Astrotech processing facility in Titusville, Florida, near NASA's Kennedy Space Center, on Wednesday, May 23, 2018, technicians and engineers deploy the magnetometer boom on NASA's Parker Solar Probe. The Parker Solar Probe will launch on a Un

  • This image made available by NASA shows an artist's rendering of the Parker Solar Probe approaching the Sun. It's designed to take solar punishment like never before, thanks to its revolutionary heat shield that‚Äôs capable of withstanding 2,500 degr
    8 / 13

    This image made available by NASA shows an artist's rendering of the Parker Solar Probe approaching the Sun. It's designed to take solar punishment like never before, thanks to its revolutionary heat shield that’s capable of withstanding 2,500 degr

  • At NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, the Parker Solar Probe is lowered into the 40-foot-tall thermal vacuum chamber. Why? The thermal vacuum chamber simulates the harsh conditions that the spacecraft will experience on its journey through space, in
    9 / 13

    At NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center, the Parker Solar Probe is lowered into the 40-foot-tall thermal vacuum chamber. Why? The thermal vacuum chamber simulates the harsh conditions that the spacecraft will experience on its journey through space, in

  • A brilliant blue sky serves as a backdrop as the United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy first stage is being lifted to the vertical position at the Vertical Integration Facility near Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Flori
    10 / 13

    A brilliant blue sky serves as a backdrop as the United Launch Alliance Delta IV Heavy first stage is being lifted to the vertical position at the Vertical Integration Facility near Space Launch Complex 37 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Flori

  • This handout illustration obtained July 6, 2018 courtesy of NASA/Johns Hopkins APL shows an artistís conception of NASAís Parker Solar Probe, the spacecraft that will fly through the Sunís corona to trace how energy and heat move through the starís a
    11 / 13

    This handout illustration obtained July 6, 2018 courtesy of NASA/Johns Hopkins APL shows an artistís conception of NASAís Parker Solar Probe, the spacecraft that will fly through the Sunís corona to trace how energy and heat move through the starís a

  • (FILES) In this file photo taken on March 28, 2018, engineers examine the Parker Solar Probe during a media preview at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. The Parker Solar Probe will launch on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV He
    12 / 13

    (FILES) In this file photo taken on March 28, 2018, engineers examine the Parker Solar Probe during a media preview at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland. The Parker Solar Probe will launch on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV He

  • Betsy Congdon, Parker Solar Probe Thermal Protection System lead engineer at APL, shows a sample of what the heat shield can do with heat applied to it during a preview briefing on the NASA's Parker Solar Probe at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Flori
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    Betsy Congdon, Parker Solar Probe Thermal Protection System lead engineer at APL, shows a sample of what the heat shield can do with heat applied to it during a preview briefing on the NASA's Parker Solar Probe at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Flori

Armada con un escudo de alta tecnología para protegerla del intensísimo calor, la sonda Parker despegó este domingo dispuesta a "tocar el Sol" y tratar de responder a una pregunta que atormenta a los científicos: ¿por qué su corona es infinitamente más caliente que su superficie?

Tras un retraso que obligó a suspender el lanzamiento un día, la sonda, que partió desde Cabo Cañaveral en Florida, será el primer objeto construido por el hombre para hacer frente a las condiciones infernales de esta parte de la atmósfera de nuestra estrella y la atravesará 24 veces a unos 6,2 millones de kilómetros de la superficie del durante los siete años que está previsto que dure la misión.

Para sobrevivir, la nave está equipada con un escudo compuesto de carbono de unos 12 centímetros de espesor que debe protegerla de una temperatura de 1.400 grados -suficiente para fundir el silicio- y mantener funcionando los instrumentos científicos a unos cómodos 29 grados.

Sigue el lanzamiento de la sonda aquí

Estos instrumentos deben permitir medir las partículas de alta energía, las fluctuaciones magnéticas y tomar imágenes para comprender mejor esta corona, que es "un ambiente muy extraño, desconocido para nosotros", dice Alex Young, un especialista en el Sol de la .

De hecho, la observación a distancia llegó a su límite, dice Nicky Fox, miembro del Laboratorio de Física Aplicada de la Universidad Johns Hopkins y responsable científica de la misión.

"Tenemos que ir a donde esto ocurre, donde pasan todas estas cosas misteriosas", dice.

--- Cuanto más lejos, más caliente ---

A diferencia de una hoguera, donde la parte más caliente está en el centro, la temperatura aumenta a medida que uno se aleja del Sol.

"Cuando pasas de la superficie del Sol, que está a 5.500 grados Celsius, a la corona, nos encontramos rápidamente a millones de grados", explica Young.

El experto espera que Parker, la única nave de la NASA que lleva el nombre de un científico aún vivo -el famoso astrólogo de 91 años Eugene Parker-, ayude a dar respuestas a lo que la NASA llama el "problema del calentamiento de la corona".

El asunto también es importante para predecir mejor el clima espacial.

Por lo tanto, las tormentas solares se alcanzan a sentir hasta en la Tierra, donde pueden perturbar el funcionamiento de la red eléctrica, pero también provocar fallas en los satélites que orbitan el planeta o incluso poner en peligro la vida de los astronautas.

"Es tan importante para nosotros ser capaces de predecir el clima espacial como lo es predecir el clima en la ", sostiene Young.

Parker, que es la nave espacial más rápida construida por el hombre con una velocidad máxima de 692.000 km/h, despegó el 12 de agosto de la base espacial en Cabo Cañaveral.

El vehículo, que tiene el tamaño de un automóvil y costó 1.500 millones de dólares, fue instalado en la parte superior del cohete Delta IV-Heavy, el cual lo ha llevado al espacio.

Fuente: AFP

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