NASA's Psyche mission launch delayed to October 12: Here's why
NASA has announced it is pushing the launch of its Psyche mission, by one week. The spacecraft will now liftoff on October 12, whereas the original plan was for October 5. The mission aims to probe a unique metal-rich asteroid called Psyche, located in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. This change in launch time allows the mission team to "complete the verifications of the parameters used to control the Psyche spacecraft's nitrogen cold gas thrusters," said NASA.
Operating within temperature limits is essential for long-term performance: NASA
"The parameters were recently adjusted in response to updated, warmer temperature predictions for the thrusters," NASA said. "Operating the thrusters within temperature limits is essential to ensure the long-term health of the units," added the space agency. The Psyche mission has previously faced delays as well. It was initially supposed to launch last year, but the mission launch was pushed after mission teams found problems with the spacecraft's flight software.
$1.2 billion mission to study the metallic asteroid
With a budget of $1.2 billion, the main goal of the mission is to explore the Psyche asteroid. It is believed that the 280-km-wide Psyche asteroid is the exposed core of a protoplanet that lost its rocky outer layers due to violent impacts. Such objects form one of the building blocks of our solar system and investigating them could help scientists better understand how the Earth formed. The spacecraft is set to reach its target asteroid only in 2029.
The mission will also be testing a laser communication system
Once the spacecraft reaches the asteroid, it will spend two years in a series of gradually lower orbits to study Psyche's structure and composition. If all goes to plan, it will be the first time that a spacecraft has visited a solar system object made mostly of metal, opening up new possibilities for scientific discoveries. In the first two years of its journey, the mission will also be testing a laser communications system of high-bandwidth optical communications.
SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket to carry Psyche spacecraft
The Psyche mission will take off on SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket from NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Florida. This launch will mark the eighth time that Falcon Heavy has taken to the skies. Interestingly, it will be the first time this rocket will carry a NASA mission. Falcon Heavy is currently the second-most powerful rocket in operation, after NASA's Space Launch System (SLS), which flew the Artemis 1 mission. The optimal launch window for the Psyche mission extends till October 25.
