NASA's Parker Solar Probe, launching in 2018, will fly through the sun's corona and will revolutionize our understanding of our star. For almost half a century, scientists have wanted to send a mission to the sun, but no spacecraft could withstand the intense heat... until now. This session will discuss how the mission's science will unlock many mysteries about stars like our sun, and will explain the revolutionary heat shield that makes the mission possible.

[Programming descriptions are generated by participants and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of SXSW.]