Nasa has delayed the launch of its Psyche mission, a rocket that is attempting to reach a distant metal-rich asteroid in our solar system.
Although the asteroid mission was due to launch today, bad weather has stalled Nasa’s plans. Instead, the rocket is expected to take off tomorrow, if the weather improves.
The Psyche mission is making its way to an asteroid that also goes by the same name. Located in our solar system between Mars and Jupiter, scientists believe the asteroid is composed of the exposed nickel-iron core of an early planet.
The probe, which is attached to a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket, is hoping that the mission will give them a better insight into what the interior of our own planet looks like.
So what do we know about the launch?
What is Psyche?
16 Psyche is the name given to the asteroid that is orbiting the sun between Mars and Jupiter.
The asteroid was actually first discovered in 1852 and has been a focus of great wonder for scientists and astronomers ever since. What makes it interesting is that scientists suspect the asteroid is made up of iron and nickel.
According to Forbes, some estimates believe that 16 Psyches could be worth about $10,000 quadrillion due to its metal make-up.
What is the Psyche probe?
Psyche, named after the asteroid, is a Nasa-built probe that is about to embark on a mission to an asteroid 2.2 billion miles away from Earth. The mission, led by Arizona State University, is expected to take at least six years before it reaches the 173-mile-wide asteroid.
The aim of the probe is to study the surface of the asteroid, with the hope of learning more about the core of planets such as Earth, Venus, and Mars.
All of these planets are known to have a metal core, which is difficult to study because of the many layers between it and a planet’s surface.
Earth’s liquid iron-ore core also creates our planet’s magnetic field, and studies on the asteroid will hopefully give scientists more insights into how our own planet operates.
“Psyche gives us the opportunity to visit a core the only way that humankind can ever do, and so we hope to learn something about what’s inside the Earth and other rocky planets by visiting Psyche,” said Lindy Elkins-Tanton, Psyche’s principal investigator.
When is the Psyche mission going to take off?
Nasa’s Psyche probe is set to be launched tomorrow, Friday, October 13, at 2.19pm GMT, from Nasa’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
A storm that blew in on Wednesday night scuppered plans to go ahead with a launch on Thursday. While Nasa is hopeful that the probe can depart tomorrow, it’ll depend on whether the weather conditions ease.
If the launch can’t take place on Friday, then the team hope Psyche can leave on Saturday.
