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Parker Solar Probe Finds Charged Dust Heating Sun’s Corona

7/5/2026

Summary

Story summary

NASA's Parker Solar Probe detected charged dust near the Sun, suggesting a role in coronal heating.
Syed Ayaz of the University of Alabama in Huntsville used voltage spikes in probe’s FIELDS antennas on June 30 2024 at 6.3-13.2 million km to infer grain impacts.
Dust adds inertia to kinetic Alfvén waves, slowing them so energy travels farther.
Dust charge strengthens wave-particle coupling, releasing energy and prompting missions to test if dust heats the corona.

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Story summary

NASA's Parker Solar Probe detected charged dust near the Sun, suggesting a role in coronal heating.
Syed Ayaz of the University of Alabama in Huntsville used voltage spikes in probe’s FIELDS antennas on June 30 2024 at 6.3-13.2 million km to infer grain impacts.
Dust adds inertia to kinetic Alfvén waves, slowing them so energy travels farther.
Dust charge strengthens wave-particle coupling, releasing energy and prompting missions to test if dust heats the corona.