NASA mourning: Sunshine physicist Eugene Parker, “father” of Parker Solar Probe “gone”

The US space agency (NASA) announced that the pioneering American sun physicist Eugene Parker, named after the Parker Solar Probe, which studies the Sun, has come closer to it than any other spacecraft in the past.

Parker studied Physics at Michigan State University and received his Ph.D. in 1951 from the Caltech Institute of Technology in California. As a young professor (since 1955) at the University of Chicago, Parker developed a mathematical theory in 1957 that first predicted the existence of the solar “wind”, the direct current of charged solar particles emitted into space from the atmosphere (crown ) of the Sun.

At first his theory was not believed, but he himself was to continue his career, with successive new discoveries, to revolutionize the way scientists see the Sun. As early as 1962, NASA’s “Mariner 2” spacecraft, during its voyage to Venus, had confirmed the existence of the solar wind.

“One of the greatest scientific and leadership minds of our time,” said NASA chief Bill Nelson. of”.

“The field of heliophysics exists largely thanks to Dr. Eugene Parker. “Honoring his work by naming him the Parker Solar Probe is one of the proudest accomplishments of my career,” said Thomas Zerbuchen, NASA’s deputy chief and top scientist.

In August 2018, Parker was the only living scientist lucky enough to see a spacecraft named after him launch. The spacecraft continues its daring mission today, making increasingly close periodic approaches to the Sun with the goal of eventually reaching a distance of up to 6.5 million kilometers from its visible surface. Its mission is expected to be completed in 2025.

The first crystal clear photograph of James Webb

NASA also released the first clear image of the new James Webb Space Telescope, the most advanced spacecraft still in the process of aligning and testing the 18 hexagonal sections of its main mirror, with a total diameter of 6 , 5 meters. The image shows – with greater clarity than expected – a bright orange star, with thousands of galaxies in the background, creating optimism in the astronomical community that the telescope has indeed the potential to make spectacular discoveries in the years to come.

“The optical performance of the telescope is absolutely impressive. It works really well, “James Webb’s manager Lee Feinberg told a news conference. “All the sleepless nights and worries I had are all behind us,” Zerbuchen said with relief.

The $ 10 billion James Webb, much more powerful than Hubble and the most expensive and accurate space telescope ever built, was launched at Christmas 2021 and is expected to capture its first scientific imagery this summer. even better focus. The first test image of the telescope was taken in February, but it was still blurry because the settings had not been made properly.

Follow Skai.gr on Google News
and be the first to know all the news