ReadWorks NASA Probe to Explore the Sun's Atmosphere for the First Time

Identify two things on Earth that can be affected by space weather.

-electric grids -GPS systems

What is the main idea of this article?

For the first time, NASA is sending a probe to the sun's atmosphere to take measurements and help answer questions about the sun's atmosphere and space weather

What are scientists hoping to learn about through the Parker Solar Probe mission?

Scientists are hoping to learn about the sun's atmosphere and space weather.

How might the Parker Solar Probe mission affect regular people on Earth? Support your answer with evidence from the text.

The mission could help our electronics be made more resistant. "...further understanding of the atmospheric changes will help scientists find ways to minimize disruptions to these systems on Earth."

Please read these sentences from the text. "This is the first time a satellite will fly directly into the sun's atmosphere, with the aim of answering questions including why the atmosphere[...] is hotter than the surface of the sun itself and other questions about space weather. [...] 'We have not been able to answer these questions without being able to take a probe at the sun,' said Nicola Fox[.]" What conclusion can be drawn based on this evidence?

This satellite will give us information about the sun and space weather that we've never had access to before

What unprecedented mission is NASA going to launch?

a mission to fly directly into the sun's atmosphere

Why might the Parker Solar Probe be the first time a satellite will fly into the sun's atmosphere?

because this is the first time the technology has been available to allow a satellite to get very close to the sun

Please read these sentences from the text. "About eight weeks after the launch, the satellites will encounter Venus and do a flyby of the planet, and eight weeks after that, it will encounter the sun's atmosphere for the first time. Traveling at 430,000 miles an hour, the satellite will continue making orbits around the sun, using instruments to measure the atmosphere." What does the word encounter mean as used in these sentences?

come across

What does this article describe?

the purpose and applications of the Parker Solar Probe mission

Please choose the answer that best completes the sentence. Plasma and radiation from the sun can affect our planet; _________, understanding weather patterns in space will have applications for Earth.

therefore