Culture

NASA Speeds Up Mission to Explore Metal Asteroid Worth Quadrillions of Dollars

Exploration of space rock rich in nickel-iron will happen four years earlier than planned.

Artist's concept of the Psyche spacecraft, which will conduct a direct exploration of an asteroid thought to be a stripped planetary core. (SSL/ASU/P. Rubin/NASA/JPL-Caltech)

By Matthew Reitman / May 26, 2017 5:00 am

NASA’s in a rush to explore a metal-rich asteroid.

A mission to explore an asteroid that’s almost entirely made of nickel-iron will not only start a year earlier—but also get there faster than originally planned.

NASA announced Wednesday it had fast-tracked the Psyche mission, which lends it name from its destination, 16 Psyche, after its scientists calculated a more efficient trajectory. The mission is now planned to arrive in 2026.

Artist rendition of the asteroid Psyche. (Peter Rubin/ASU)

Located in the asteroid belt between Jupiter and Mars, the 130-mile-wide 16 Psyche is unique because it’s primarily made of metal instead of a mix of rock ice like most asteroids. The space rock contains so much valuable metal that if all of it were mined it’s estimated to be worth $10,000 quadrillion, Global News reports.

“We challenged the mission design team to explore if an earlier launch date could provide a more efficient trajectory to the asteroid Psyche, and they came through in a big way,” said Jim Green, director of the Planetary Science Division at NASA Headquarters, in a press statement. “This will enable us to fulfill our science objectives sooner and at a reduced cost.”