In an attempt that will evidently make human observations of the Sun more direct, US space agency NASA is announcing Solar Probe Plus (SPP) – a new mission that will involve the sending of a spacecraft to the Sun.

The small car-sized spacecraft has been so designed that it can operate in the Sun’s atmosphere – also called corona - which is the Sun’s hottest region; estimated to be nearly one hundred times hotter than the Sun’s surface, photosphere.

According to Richard Harrison, at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory, the SSP – which is scheduled for a 2018 launch – will “literally slice through a bit of the Sun's atmosphere, and that's never been done before.”

The spacecraft to be used for the solar probe – a project that will cost nearly $180 million - will be fitted with a wide array of instruments, including a solar wind particle detector; a 3D camera; and a device for measuring the magnetic field. To ensure that the instruments withstand the temperatures and the radiation, they will be protected by a huge, yet-to-be-built carbon-composite heat shield.

The spacecraft will make use of two different solar panel arrays for collecting energy. While a main array will operate during the journey to power the ship’s propulsion; the second array, having liquid-cooled panels made of heat-resistant cells, will help the probe – which will eventually be destroyed by the scorching temperatures exceeding 1,400C - observe the sun from a distance of 3.7 million miles.