What is the Psyche mission that NASA launched on Friday towards an exciting asteroid?

Two weeks after returning the largest asteroid sample ever collected to Earth, NASA is already preparing to set out again to explore another asteroid. its name ? spirit. This asteroid, with a diameter of about 200 kilometers, is located between Mars and Jupiter.

It has long been talked about within the scientific community for its special nature: it is of type M, meaning that it is composed entirely of metals.

To ensure this, the US Space Agency must launch, on Friday, October 13, at 4:19 pm French time, from Cape Canaveral, Florida, a probe bearing the name of the asteroid. Weather conditions permitting… because the mission has been postponed several times. But for scientists, the game is worth the effort.

On the origins of the solar system

The main interest of this mission is to collect as much information as possible about this astral body, which has properties similar to our terrestrial core. “One existing theory is that it was in the bowels of a planet forming.” explains David Oh, an engineer and project manager at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

A protoplanet cannot complete its growth after colliding with another asteroid. Thanks to Psyche, scientists have been able to study the cores of planets like ours in detail for the first time. It is impossible to do this completely on Earth due to the intense heat and very high pressure in the Earth’s core.

If these are indeed the remains of a planet at the beginning of our solar system, Psyche could also provide information about how planets formed.

Goldmine ?

But Psyche also has a financial interest. The value of the asteroid is estimated at about 10 thousand quadrillion euros. If its value were shared around the world, this would mean that every person living on Earth would receive… 1.4 billion euros! Don’t get carried away. If Psyche is indeed a metallic asteroid, composed mainly of nickel and iron but also rare metals such as gold or palladium, its composition and internal structure are still a mystery.

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Then, in accordance with the 1967 UN Convention, “Outer space, including the Moon and other celestial bodies, shall not be subject to national appropriation by declaration of sovereignty, use or occupation, nor by any other means.”

Finally, bringing back a piece of an asteroid does cost a fortune, as demonstrated by the Osiris-Rex mission, which returned to Earth on September 24, with samples from the asteroid Bennu. The ratio ? Billions of dollars for… 250 grams of asteroid.

No answers expected before 2029

Through its liftoff on Friday, the Psyche probe and its three measuring instruments will attempt to answer several questions such as: Is Psyche the remaining core of an embryonic planet, destroyed by collisions with other celestial bodies? What does its surface consist of and what is its density? Is it close to the metallic meteorites collected on Earth, which also bear witness to the solar system’s past?

To get the answers, you have to be patient. The spacecraft will reach its final destination in August 2029. The probe will remain in orbit around the star, at least, until November 2031.