Fast Facts: NASA’s Psyche Mission

NASA’s Psyche spacecraft recently launched atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket from Kennedy Space Center’s historic Launch Complex 39A in Florida on a first-of-its-kind mission for the agency.

Its mission is to journey to a unique metal-rich asteroid, also named Psyche, which orbits the Sun between MarsMars is the second smallest planet in our solar system and the fourth planet from the sun. It is a dusty, cold, desert world with a very thin atmosphere. Iron oxide is prevalent in Mars' surface resulting in its reddish color and its nickname "The Red Planet." Mars' name comes from the Roman god of war.” data-gt-translate-attributes=”[{“attribute”:”data-cmtooltip”, “format”:”html”}]”>Mars and JupiterJupiter is the largest planet in the solar system and the fifth planet from the sun. It is a gas giant with a mass greater then all of the other planets combined. Its name comes from the Roman god Jupiter.” data-gt-translate-attributes=”[{“attribute”:”data-cmtooltip”, “format”:”html”}]”>Jupiter. This asteroid is believed to be the exposed nickel-iron core of an early planet, offering insights into the building blocks of planet formation. The spacecraft is designed to study the asteroid’s composition, topography, and magnetic properties, among other things. By studying Psyche, scientists hope to gain a better understanding of the history of our solar system, the evolution of planets, and the metallic cores of terrestrial bodies.

NASA’s Psyche spacecraft, atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, lifts off from Kennedy Space Center’s historic Launch Complex 39A in Florida at 10:19 a.m. EDT on Friday, October 13, 2023. The Psyche mission will study a metal-rich asteroid with the same name, located in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. This is NASA’s first mission to study an asteroid that has more metal than rock or ice. Riding with Psyche is a pioneering technology demonstration – NASA’s Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) experiment – which will be the first test of laser communications beyond the Moon. Credit: SpaceX

Let’s look at some facts and figures that make the Psyche mission unique:

• This will be the first time NASAEstablished in 1958, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is an independent agency of the United States Federal Government that succeeded the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA). It is responsible for the civilian space program, as well as aeronautics and aerospace research. Its vision is "To discover and expand knowledge for the benefit of humanity." Its core values are "safety, integrity, teamwork, excellence, and inclusion." NASA conducts research, develops technology and launches missions to explore and study Earth, the solar system, and the universe beyond. It also works to advance the state of knowledge in a wide range of scientific fields, including Earth and space science, planetary science, astrophysics, and heliophysics, and it collaborates with private companies and international partners to achieve its goals.” data-gt-translate-attributes=”[{“attribute”:”data-cmtooltip”, “format”:”html”}]”>NASA has explored a world made not of rock and ice, but with large amounts of metal, as the mission seeks to understand a previously unexplored building block of planet formation: iron cores.
• Psyche is the first primary NASA science mission to be launched on a SpaceXCommonly known as SpaceX, Space Exploration Technologies Corp. is a private American aerospace manufacturer and space transport services company that was founded by Elon Musk in 2002. Headquartered in Hawthorne, California, the company designs, manufactures, and launches advanced rockets and spacecraft. SpaceX's ultimate goal is to reduce space transportation costs and enable the colonization of Mars.” data-gt-translate-attributes=”[{“attribute”:”data-cmtooltip”, “format”:”html”}]”>SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket.
• Psyche will be the eighth Falcon Heavy mission for SpaceX.
• Psyche marks the 102nd full end-to-end mission for NASA’s Launch Services Program (LSP).
• Psyche will be the second LSP science mission to launch from Launch Complex 39A (IXPE).
• Psyche will be the seventh overall LSP science mission to fly on a SpaceX rocket (Jason-3, TESS, Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich, DART, IXPE, SWOT)
• Psyche will be the fourth LSP mission to launch on a previously flown Falcon first stage (DART, IXPE, SWOT).
• NASA will have the first optical communications demonstration from distances farther than the Moon, through DSOC (Deep Space Optical Communications), which will operate during the first two years of the roughly six-year journey to Psyche.
• Just over 2.5 years into the mission, the Psyche spacecraft will fly by the planet Mars for a gravity assist.
• The Psyche spacecraft will travel 2.2 billion miles on its journey to the asteroid Psyche.
• Along with DSOC, other instruments carried on the Psyche spacecraft include two multispectral imagers, two magnetometers, and a gamma-ray and neutron spectrometer.
• The Psyche spacecraft will arrive at the asteroid Psyche in 2029, after about six years of a solar electric-powered cruise.
• The Psyche spacecraft will spend 26 months in orbit around the asteroid Psyche, mapping and studying Psyche’s properties.