Emily Chan
Eventually, it will get up to speeds of 124,000 miles per hour. The total length of its journey will be 2.2 billion miles, taking a circuitous route to get to its destination.
Recently, the craft entered “full cruise” mode. This means that it began using electric ion thrusters to help propel itself toward the asteroid.
The thrusters release charged ions of xenon that are powered by sunlight, maintaining a consistent acceleration.
By the spring of 2026, it will pass by Mars before reaching the asteroid toward the end of the decade.
Once it arrives, it will orbit around the asteroid for 26 months as it maps the space object’s surface, gravity, and magnetic field.
“This will be the first time we’ve sent a mission to a body that is not mostly rock or ice, but metal,” said Benjamin Weiss, an MIT professor of planetary science.
“Not only is this asteroid potentially a metal world, but asteroids are building blocks of planets. So Psyche could tell us something about how planets formed.”
