NASA’s Parker Solar Probe Sheds Light on Sun’s Mysterious Outer Atmosphere

NASA’s Parker Solar Probe has uncovered new clues about the sun’s puzzling outer atmosphere, known as the corona, which is mysteriously hotter than the sun’s surface. Scientists have long debated why the corona heats up as it moves farther from the sun, but data from Parker is helping narrow down the possibilities.

The probe detected sudden reversals in the sun’s magnetic fields, called “switchbacks,” which could play a role in heating the corona by releasing stored magnetic energy. While these switchbacks were not found within the corona itself, they were common in the solar wind near the sun, ruling out one major hypothesis about their origin.

Researchers believe that chaotic magnetic field collisions on the sun’s surface might still contribute to heating the corona. This discovery enhances our understanding of the sun and may eventually improve predictions of solar storms.

The findings, published in *The Astrophysical Journal Letters* on July 29, represent a key milestone in NASA’s Parker mission, which began in 2018.

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