On August 12, 2018 at 07:31 UTC the "Delta-4 Heavy” rocket-carrier was launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station, Florida. The launch was performed by the United Launch Alliance. The rocket orbited NASA’s Parker Solar Probe on a daring seven-year mission. The goal is to help scientists figure out what makes the corona hotter than the sun’s visible surface and what accelerates charged particles to enormous velocities, producing the solar wind that streams away from the corona in all directions.