[bisRepetita]

For metric system people, if the Sun and the Earth were 1 meter apart, the probe would get as close as 11cm from the Sun.

(site writes: "If Earth was at one end of a yard-stick and the Sun on the other, Parker Solar Probe will make it to within four inches of the solar surface.")

[kitd]

But it's getting closer with each pass, and that distance will be down to 4cm by 2025.

[mcv]

But that's not really touching the sun, is it?

[marcosdumay]

Yes, it is. The Sun is a very large ball of gas with a small one of something that is not gas on the middle (and a gradient between them). This goes well inside the large ball of gas.

[cecilpl2]

The sun doesn't have a solid surface like the Earth - it is a ball of gas that gets progressively less dense as it transitions to vacuum.

[omegalulw]

The original phrasing is more accurate. "Earth and sun being ... apart" doesnt tell you if you are measuring from the center or surface.

[chmod775]

> "Earth and sun being ... apart" doesnt tell you if you are measuring from the center or surface.

Typically in the English language that is understood as surface to surface.

[spookthesunset]

11cm is still a long ways away. It's crazy how close yet so far everything is.