NASA plans mission to “touch the sun” in December -.

NASA has committed to a mission in which a man-made object will travel faster than ever before and closer to the sun than any previous attempt. The Parker Solar Probe will circle the sun and get about 6.1 million kilometers close to the solar body, where it will experience temperatures of about 1,400 degrees Celsius as it whizzes by at the mega speed of 435,000 mph.
Speaking to BBC News, project scientist Dr. Nour Raouafi stated: “We are basically landing on a star. This will be a monumental achievement for all humanity. This is equivalent to the 1969 moon landing.”

Although 6.1 million kilometers seems like a huge distance between the sun and the probe, the distance is said to correspond to about 4% of the distance between the Earth and the sun (which is about 149 million kilometers).

As for why the mission is taking place, it is in the goal of understanding some important solar processes, including those of the corona, the sun’s atmosphere.
The mission will take place on Dec. 24, which means science fans can wake up on Christmas morning with an extra gift to look forward to.