Both ESA as NASA will be launching their solar probes next year 2018.
ESA's Solar Orbiter will be launched October 2018 and will orbit the Sun on a distance of 0.28AU closest.
Parker Solar Probe from NASA will be launched in August next year and will be travelling into the Sun's atmosphere as close as 0.04AU.
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| Eugene Parker visiting Parker Solar Probe at APL |
Eugne Parker is an American astrophysicist who developed the theory that the sun's atmosphere expands beyond the sun itself and the fact it's plasma is travelling between the planets. Today we know this as the solar wind.
