The Parker Solar Probe’s primary mission was planned to last about 7 years, with 24 close orbits around the Sun. NASA also says the spacecraft’s next steps beyond that are under review, and the probe remained operating normally after its 2025 close flybys.

What that means in practice

  • The spacecraft itself can keep orbiting the Sun after the main science phase.
  • Its scientific life is limited more by fuel, orientation, and extreme heat than by one fixed calendar date.
  • Once it can no longer point properly or maintain operations, the instruments will stop working, even if parts of the probe keep circling the Sun.

Simple version

So the short answer is: about 7 years for the planned science mission , but the hardware may remain in solar orbit much longer.

TL;DR: Parker was built for a roughly 7-year primary mission, not a forever mission, though the probe can physically outlast its active science phase by a long time.