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public  Greenwich, UK Greenwich, UK  ⓘ
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Sunrise: 7:12 
Transit: 12:14 
Sunset: 17:16
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Space Probes » 

Parker Solar Probe

Above the horizon.  Rise: 8:15 | Tran: 14:13 | Set: 20:12
Alt: 34.57°   Az: 210.59°   Direction: South-South-West

The Parker Solar Probe is a NASA spacecraft designed to study the Sun and its atmosphere. It was launched on August 12, 2018, from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida, and is currently orbiting the Sun in a highly elliptical orbit that takes it closer to the Sun than any previous spacecraft. The mission objectives of the Parker Solar Probe are to study the structure and dynamics of the Sun's corona, the Sun's magnetic field, and the solar wind. To achieve this, the probe will make a total of 24 close approaches to the Sun over the course of its mission, getting as close as 3.83 million miles from the Sun's surface, which is about 7 times closer than any previous spacecraft. By studying the Sun up close, the Parker Solar Probe aims to improve our understanding of space weather and its effects on Earth, as well as providing new insights into the fundamental processes that govern stars in the universe.

Parker Solar Probe is in the constellation of Pisces, at a distance of 0.0 kilometers from Earth. The current Right Ascension is 00h 01m 17s and the Declination is +00° 08’ 23” (apparent coordinates).

Finder Charts

Map showing Parker Solar Probe in Pisces on February, 16 2025. Field of view: 50x30 degrees
View interactive star map
Sky map showing Parker Solar Probe in Pisces on February, 16 2025. Field of view: 15x9 degrees. View in interactive sky chart

High precision deep sky finder chart, 60 arcmin wide, showing where Parker Solar Probe is right now. Click on the image to see a more detailed fullscreen tracker view.

Parker Solar Probe
RA: -00h 00m 00s
Dec: -00° 00’ 00”
Deep sky finder chart for Parker Solar Probe. Field of view: 60x40 arcmins. View in deep sky object tracker

Also check out Where is Parker Solar Probe?, a page that provides all the information needed to find Parker Solar Probe in the sky and additional links to sky charts.

Celestial Coordinates

Apparent

00h 01m 17s
+00° 08’ 23”
01h 39m 05s
01h 40m 23s

J2000

-00h 00m 00s
-00° 00’ 00”

Additional Information

Pisces

Rise and Set Times

Today's rise, transit and set times of Parker Solar Probe from Greenwich, UK (all times relative to the local timezone Europe/London):

Azimuth: 89.9°
Max altitude: 38.7°
Azimuth: 270.1°
  • Parker Solar Probe is above the horizon from Greenwich, UK.
  • Right now it is placed in the South-South-West direction at an altitude of 34.57° above the horizon.
  • Given its current magnitude, Parker Solar Probe is visible to the naked eye, even from highly light polluted areas.
  • Go to interactive sky chart

If you need to access this information frequently for your observations, you can create a simple customized Quick Access page, so that you can easily bookmark it in your browser favorites or add a shortcut to your mobile phones' home screen.

Distance from Earth

The distance of Parker Solar Probe from Earth is currently 0.0 kilometers, equivalent to 0.0000000000 Astronomical Units. Light takes to travel from Parker Solar Probe and arrive to us.

0.0
0.0000000000

The following chart shows the distance of Parker Solar Probe from Earth as a function of time. In the chart the distance data is measured in Astronomical Units and sampled with an interval of 1 day.

Chart of the distance of Parker Solar Probe from Earth in Astronomical Units (au)

The value of the reported distance might be somewhat inaccurate around the times of closest approach for objects passing extremely close to Earth. The value of the distance of Parker Solar Probe from Earth is also available as a real time updated value in the Live Position and Data Tracker.

Closest Approach

Between 1 January 2020 and 31 December 2024, the closest approach of Parker Solar Probe to Earth happens on Mon Aug 19 2024 at a distance of 0.281446 Astronomical Units, or 42,103,721 kilometers:

Mon Aug 19 2024
42,103,721
0.281446

NOTE: values for the closest approach are computed with a sampling interval of 1 day.

15 Days Ephemeris

The following table lists the ephemerides of Parker Solar Probe computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval. Apparent celestial coordinates are provided.

Date Right AscensionR.A. DeclinationDec. MagnitudeMag Constellation
2025 Feb 09 - - - -
2025 Feb 10 - - - -
2025 Feb 11 - - - -
2025 Feb 12 - - - -
2025 Feb 13 - - - -
2025 Feb 14 - - - -
2025 Feb 15 - - - -
2025 Feb 16 - - - -
2025 Feb 17 - - - -
2025 Feb 18 - - - -
2025 Feb 19 - - - -
2025 Feb 20 - - - -
2025 Feb 21 - - - -
2025 Feb 22 - - - -

Additional Resources