Parker Solar Probe

NASA's new mission to "touch the sun" is packed up, buckled in and ready to launch during a window opening Aug. 11 at 3:33 a.m. EDT (0733 GMT), according to a briefing today (Aug. 9).

We see it every day, but our sun still poses countless mysteries. But not for long, if NASA's Parker Solar Probe has its way.

If you think a sunny day here on Earth gets toasty, imagine how much hotter it would be if you were flying through the upper layers of the sun's atmosphere.

NASA is just a week away from launching its next science mission, a spacecraft called the Parker Solar Probe that is currently scheduled to launch early in the morning on Aug. 11.

NASA is preparing for its next big mission: getting up close and personal with the sun. And to do so, the agency needs a killer heat shield.

NASA's next solar spacecraft can withstand so much heat that even a blowtorch won't disturb the shield, a new video shows.

NASA engineers are one step closer to understanding the "crown" of the sun.

Soon, two ambitious missions will take us closer to the sun than we've ever gone before, providing invaluable insight into how our star really works.

As a NASA spacecraft designed to fly closer to the sun than ever before arrived in Florida for launch, project officials are still studying problems with sensors on the spacecraft.