October 2023 promises to be a thrilling month for space enthusiasts, as a mesmerizing ‘ring of fire’ annular solar eclipse is set to grace the skies of North America. However, another highly anticipated event is also on NASA’s launch schedule—the Psyche mission, aimed at exploring the metal-rich asteroid of the same name.
Originally slated for launch in September 2022, the Psyche mission encountered setbacks due to delays in the development and testing of its flight software. A review board, led by retired aerospace executive A. Thomas Young, conducted an investigation in November 2022 and identified institutional issues at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) as contributing factors to the delay.
But now, a new report from the same review board brings good news—the revamped mission has successfully addressed its challenges and is ready for launch.
“The independent review board is extraordinarily impressed by the accomplishments of the total JPL organization and Caltech,” the report states. “Engagement in and leadership of the overall response process by the JPL director and senior leadership is deemed ‘world class.'”
Psyche, located in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, boasts a width of 140 miles (226 kilometers) and a unique rotational axis. Its reflective properties indicate a composition largely made up of iron, nickel, or even gold. Planetary scientists believe that Psyche could be a rare example of a planetary core exposed to space following a catastrophic collision.
Some experts even suggest that Psyche’s mineral resources could be valued at an astronomical $10,000 quadrillion, surpassing the total worth of the global economy, estimated at approximately $105 trillion in 2023.
The revised launch date for the Psyche mission is now set between October 5 and 25, 2023, from Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39A in Florida. The spacecraft, riding atop a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, will perform a Mars flyby to utilize the planet’s gravity for a speed boost before reaching the asteroid in August 2029. It will then spend 26 months in orbit around Psyche, conducting observations from various altitudes.
Currently housed at the Astrotech Space Operations Facility near Kennedy Space Center, the Psyche spacecraft will commence its final assembly, testing, and launch operations this month.
As space enthusiasts eagerly await the upcoming annular solar eclipse, their anticipation grows even stronger for the groundbreaking Psyche mission. With its potential to unveil the mysteries of a metal-rich asteroid and provide valuable insights into the formation of planets, Psyche holds the promise of expanding our understanding of the universe.
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We wouldn’t be $Billionaires because those metals would no longer be rare and would have as much value as common dirt… extra amounts of those metals are currently being withheld from market to keep their price artificially high… we already have an excess of those metals, including gold, and also diamonds, mined and stockpiled by the ultra rich…