The fastest object ever built by humans is the Parker Solar Probe spacecraft which continues to orbit the Sun at 500 times the speed of sound.
NASA's Parker Solar Probe spacecraft is tasked with exploring the Sun's outer corona. It uses the planet Venus as a "slingshot" and just tied the record for the fastest moving man-made object ever made.
The previous record holder? But of course, the Parker Solar Probe, again. The spacecraft was recorded on June 29, 2024 traveling at 635.266 kilometers per hour, the second time it has reached that speed since it was launched in 2018.
We are talking about 500 times the speed of sound. And it is estimated that it will become even faster, with a top speed of about 692.000 km/h when it is expected to make its closest approach to the Sun in 2025.
It is the spacecraft's 20th approach to the sun, according to NASA uses Venus to create a kind of sling with its gravity". NASA has created a nice interactive 3D model of spacecraft motion.
In addition to collecting particle samples, Parker Solar Probe will approach the swirling mass of extremely hot plasma surrounding the Sun and take a variety of different measurements that will help improve our scientific understanding.
