The Sun, our nearest star, is an enigma with its corona, the outermost layer, reaching staggering temperatures of 500,000 degrees Celsius. This scorching region was first encountered by NASA’s Parker Solar Probe. It is not in a fictional narrative but through a groundbreaking mission that commenced on 12 August 2018.
Contrary to the imaginative depiction in the film “Sunshine,” where a crew led by Cillian Murphy embarks on a mission to revive a dimming Sun, the reality of space exploration is grounded in scientific rigour. The movie’s spacecraft, shielded by a layer of gold, is a dramatic simplification. Gold, while reflective, offers no defence against the Sun’s formidable tidal forces and radiation.