After several adjustments, NASA has confirmed that the Psyche spacecraft—on a mission to travel to an asteroid believed to contain gold worth 70,000 times the global economy—is ready for launch.
The fully assembled spacecraft is set to depart Earth in October of this year, atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, heading towards the asteroid that shares its name with the mission, 16 Psyche, commonly referred to as Psyche.
According to Space, the launch of the Psyche spacecraft was initially scheduled for October 2022 but was postponed due to issues with the flight software and prior obstacles in mission preparation, including the COVID-19 pandemic.
Psyche spacecraft and target asteroid, sharing the same name – (Graphic image from NASA).
The mission, led by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), has adjusted its trajectory in accordance with the new launch timing. It is expected to take nearly six years to reach Psyche—targeted for August 2029.
If it had launched last year, it would have had a more favorable position to arrive at Psyche in just over three years (early 2026), but unfortunately, NASA missed the “golden window.”
NASA’s office stated that the most intriguing insights they hope to gain from Psyche are related to understanding how our Earth formed. Previous studies led by the agency suggest that it is a “failed planet.”
“Failed planet” refers to the earliest planetary bodies in a star system, including our Solar System, but not yet in the form of planets that we commonly see. Many of these small planets would break apart during the wild “youth” of the star system, thereby providing material to coalesce into true planets.
If successful, Psyche could represent the core of an Earth-like planet, but unfortunately, it did not succeed.
Additionally, studies based on spectral data also indicate that Psyche may primarily consist of precious metals—most abundantly gold and platinum—and could hold value equivalent to 70,000 times the global economy.
