NASA Psyche Mission: Charting a Metallic World

This artist's depiction explores a metallic world called Psyche, an asteroid that provides a unique opportunity to understand the fundamental components of planet formation. The NASA Psyche mission is scheduled to launch in 2023 and is expected to reach the asteroid Psyche, located between Mars and Jupiter, in 2026. The spacecraft, also named Psyche, will spend 21 months in orbit around the asteroid, conducting mapping and studying its properties. Leading the mission is Principal Investigator Lindy Elkins-Tanton from Arizona State University. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is responsible for the mission's overall management, system engineering, integration and testing, as well as mission operations. Maxar Technologies is contributing a high-power solar electric propulsion spacecraft chassis.