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By NASA
Explore This Section Science Uncategorized Helio Highlights: June… Home Framework for Heliophysics Education About Helio Big Idea 1.1 Helio Big Idea 1.2 Helio Big Idea 1.3 Helio Big Idea 2.1 Helio Big Idea 2.2 Helio Big Idea 2.3 Helio Big Idea 3.1 Helio Big Idea 3.2 Helio Big Idea 3.3 Helio Missions Helio Topics Resource Database About NASA HEAT More Highlights Space Math 4 min read
Helio Highlights: June 2025
4 Min Read Helio Highlights: June 2025
An artist’s interpretation of the Parker Solar Probe flying through the corona. Credits:
NASA Two Stars in Solar Science
It takes a lot of work to make space missions happen. Hundreds or even thousands of experts work as a team to put together the spacecraft. Then it has to be tested in conditions similar to space, to be sure that it can survive out there once it is launched. Fixing big issues that pop up after launch is either impossible or very difficult, so it is important that everything works before the mission gets to space.
The Parker Solar Probe and Solar Orbiter missions study the Sun from different points of view. Parker is led by NASA and was built to fly into the upper atmosphere of the Sun, called the corona. Solar Orbiter is led by the European Space Agency (ESA) and has gotten our first peek at the Sun’s poles. Together, they both provide a deeper understanding of the Sun and how it affects the rest of the solar system.
A New Way of Seeing
It takes a lot of teamwork to build and launch any space mission, and Solar Orbiter was no different. It also had to go through a lot of testing in conditions similar to outer space before it made its final journey to the launch site.
The Solar Orbiter mission has taken the highest-ever-resolution images of the Sun and recently sent back the first ever close-up images of the Sun’s poles. It has also studied the solar wind to see what it is made of and helped scientists find out where on the Sun the solar wind comes from. Working hand-in-hand with Parker, it has also shown how the solar wind gets a magnetic “push” that increases its total speed.
An infographic showing the ten scientific instruments carried aboard Solar Orbiter European Space Agency To get all of this done, the spacecraft carries ten different scientific instruments on its voyage around the Sun. These instruments work together to provide a total overview of our star. Six of them are remote-sensing instruments (above in gold), which “see” the Sun and return imagery to Earth. The other four are what’s called in-situ instruments (above in pink), which measure the environment all around the spacecraft. This includes the solar wind, and the electric and magnetic fields embedded within it.
Faster and Closer Than Ever Before
The Parker Solar Probe was named for Dr. Eugene N. Parker, who pioneered our modern understanding of the Sun. In the mid-1950s, Parker developed a theory that predicted the solar wind. The probe named after him is designed to swoop within 4 million miles (6.5 million kilometers) of the Sun’s surface to trace its energy flow, to study the heating of the corona, and to explore what accelerates the solar wind.
To get all this done, the probe has to survive the blazing hot corona. It can get up to about 2 million °F (1.1 million °C)! Parker uses high-tech thermal engineering to protect itself, including an eight-foot diameter heat shield called the Thermal Protection System (TPS). The TPS is made of two panels of carbon composite with a lightweight 4.5-inch-thick carbon foam core. This heat shield sandwich keeps things about 85 °F (29 °C) in its shadow, even though the Sun-facing side reaches about 2,500 °F (1,377 °C)!
In 2018, the Parker Solar Probe became the fastest spacecraft ever built, at about 430,000 miles per hour (700,000 kilometers per hour). It also got seven times closer to the Sun than any other spacecraft, getting within 3.8 million miles (6.2 million kilometers). It made this record-breaking close encounter on Christmas Eve of 2024.
From Yesterday to Tomorrow
The Parker Solar Probe was launched on August 12, 2018, and Solar Orbiter was launched on February 10, 2020. Both of them took off from Cape Canaveral Air Station in Florida. Some pieces of Solar Orbiter were transported in trucks, but the completed spacecraft made the journey from Europe to the U.S. on a gigantic Antonov cargo plane designed especially for transporting spacecraft.
Together, these spacecraft have done a lot to improve our knowledge of the Sun. Both missions are currently in their main operational phase, with projected end-of-mission sometime in 2026, and could continue returning data for a few years to come.
Here are more resources about these missions
Lesson Plans & Educator Guides
NASA Helio Club
Lesson Plan
A collection of six lessons created for a middle-school audience that introduce basic heliophysics concepts.
Interactive Resources
Build A Model Solar
Probe Activity
A hands-on guide showing students how to construct a homemade model of the Parker Solar Probe.
Webinars & Slide Decks
Parker’s Perihelion
The Parker Solar Probe mission is the first spacecraft to “touch” the Sun, and made its closest approach in late 2024.
How will Parker Solar Probe study the Sun?
A slide deck with resources explaining how the Parker Solar Probe can study the Sun and survive.
Exploring the Sun with Solar Orbiter Video
A video conversation about the Solar Orbiter mission with NASA scientist Dr. Teresa Nieves-Chinchilla.
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By Amazing Space
Massive Solar Prominence "The Beast" Threatens Eruption? Space Weather Update July 14 2025 NASA SDO
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By NASA
The crew of NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission sit inside a Dragon training spacecraft at SpaceX in Hawthorne, California. Pictured from left: Roscosmos cosmonaut Oleg Platonov, NASA astronauts Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman, and JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui (Credit: SpaceX). NASA’s SpaceX Crew-11 mission is set to launch a four-person crew to the International Space Station later this summer. Some of the crew have volunteered to participate in a series of experiments to address health challenges astronauts may face on deep space missions during NASA’s Artemis campaign and future human expeditions to Mars.
The research during Crew-11 includes simulated lunar landings, tactics to safeguard vision, and other human physiology studies led by NASA’s Human Research Program.
Select crew members will participate in a series of simulated Moon landings, before, during, and after their flight. Using a handheld controller and multiple screens, the astronauts will fly through simulated scenarios created to resemble the lunar South Pole region that Artemis crews plan to visit. This experiment allows researchers to evaluate how different gravitational forces may disorient astronauts and affect their ability to pilot a spacecraft, like a lunar lander.
“Even though many landing tasks are automated, astronauts must still know how to monitor the controls and know when to take over to ensure a safe landing,” said Scott Wood, a neuroscientist at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston coordinating the scientific investigation. “Our study assesses exactly how changes in gravity affect spatial awareness and piloting skills that are important for navigating these scenarios.”
A ground control group completing the same tasks over a similar timeframe will help scientists better understand gravitational effects on human performance. The experiment’s results could inform the pilot training needed for future Artemis crews.
“Experiencing weightlessness for months and then feeling greater levels of gravity on a planet like Mars, for example, may increase the risk of disorientation,” said Wood. “Our goal is to help astronauts adapt to any gravitational change, whether it’s to the Moon, a new planet, or landing back on Earth.”
Other studies during the mission will explore possible ways to treat or prevent a group of eye and brain changes that can occur during long-duration space travel, called spaceflight associated neuro-ocular syndrome (SANS).
Some researchers suspect the redistribution of bodily fluids in constant weightlessness may increase pressure in the head and contribute to SANS. One study will investigate fluid pressure on the brain while another will examine how the body processes B vitamins and whether supplements can affect how astronauts respond to bodily fluid shifts. Participating crew members will test whether a daily B vitamin supplement can eliminate or ease symptoms of SANS. Specific crew members also will wear thigh cuffs to keep bodily fluids from traveling headward.
Crew members also will complete another set of experiments, called CIPHER (Complement of Integrated Protocols for Human Exploration Research), which measures how multiple systems within the human body change in space. The study includes vision assessments, MRI scans, and other medical exams to provide a complete overview of the whole body’s response to long-duration spaceflight.
Several other studies involving human health and performance are also a part of Crew-11’s science portfolio. Crew members will contribute to a core set of measurements called Spaceflight Standard Measures, which collects physical data and biological samples from astronauts and stores them for other comparative studies. Participants will supply biological samples, such as blood and urine, for a study characterizing how spaceflight alters astronauts’ genetic makeup. In addition, volunteers will test different exercise regimens to help scientists explore what activities remain essential for long-duration journeys.
After landing, participating crew members will complete surveys to track any discomfort, such as scrapes or bruises, acquired from re-entry. The data will help clarify whether mission length increases injury risks and could help NASA design landing systems on future spacecraft as NASA prepares to travel to the Moon, Mars, and beyond.
NASA’s Human Research Program pursues methods and technologies to support safe, productive human space travel. Through science conducted in laboratories, ground-based analogs, and aboard the International Space Station, the program investigates how spaceflight affects human bodies and behaviors. Such research drives NASA’s quest to innovate ways that keep astronauts healthy and mission-ready.
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By European Space Agency
Week in images: 07-11 July 2025
Discover our week through the lens
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By Space Force
More than 700 Guardians around the world are prepared to participate in a U.S. Space Force led large-scale exercise, Resolute Space 2025, which will demonstrate the Space Force’s preparedness for complex, large-scale military operations.
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