The "Psyche" spacecraft heading to the asteroid "Psyche" has successfully started its solar propulsion system. It will utilize advanced optical communications technology via NASA's DSOC during the six-year journey, which is expected to reach the asteroid orbit in 2029.
NASA's Psyche spacecraft has begun its journey to a metallic asteroid believed to be an exposed planetary core in the asteroid belt. With this mission, NASA aims to use advanced scientific instruments to study the composition of asteroids and provide insights into the early stages of planet formation and the evolution of the solar system. Source: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU
The "Psyche" mission controller on Earth has received the signal from the spacecraft, and the solar array has been fully deployed. The spacecraft will be propelled by solar electricity. A solar array of five cross-shaped solar panels provides about 800 square feet of solar collection surface, making the spacecraft about the size of a singles tennis court when fully deployed.
The solar array will produce more than 20 kilowatts of electricity when the spacecraft is close to Earth, but when the spacecraft reaches the asteroid Psyche, far away from the sun, the solar array will produce just over 2 kilowatts of electricity - just a little more than a hair dryer. However, this power is also sufficient to meet the spacecraft's needs during the journey, including running scientific instruments, telecommunications, equipment to control the spacecraft's temperature, and the spacecraft's ultra-efficient solar electric propulsion engine.
On Friday, October 13, 2023, a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket carrying the Psyche spacecraft launched from launch site 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida. NASA's Psyche spacecraft will travel to a metal-rich asteroid of the same name orbiting the sun between Mars and Jupiter to study its composition. The spacecraft also carries the agency's Deep Space Optical Communications Technology Demonstration, which will test laser communications beyond the moon. Image credit: NASA/Aubrey Gemignani
The solar propulsion system's thrusters use electromagnetic fields to accelerate and push out charged atoms or ions of the neutral gas xenon. The expelled ions generate thrust, propelling "Psyche" through space and emitting blue light. Without the hindrance of atmospheric drag, the spacecraft's acceleration relative to Earth can reach up to 124,000 miles per hour (200,000 kilometers per hour) during interstellar travel to the asteroid belt.
At the beginning of its roughly six-year journey, the Psyche spacecraft will undergo about 100 days of initial checks to make sure everything is operating properly before firing up its thrusters. About 2.5 years after launch, the spacecraft will fly by Mars to gain gravitational acceleration. In about 5.5 years, the cruise period will end, and around June 2029, the imager on the spacecraft will be able to take pictures of the asteroid Psyche. In August 2029, the spacecraft will enter the first of a planned 26 months orbiting the metal-rich asteroid.
NASA's Psyche mission is an extraordinary attempt to explore an asteroid called Psyche, which is located in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. The asteroid, thought to be the exposed core of a protoplanet, provides a unique look into the history of violent collisions and accretion that created terrestrial planets. Source: NASA
NASA's DSOC (Deep Space Optical Communications) demonstration, carried aboard the Psyche spacecraft, will use invisible near-infrared lasers to send and receive test data, with a data transmission bandwidth 10 to 100 times greater than traditional radio wave systems currently used on spacecraft. DSOC will demonstrate its operations nearly two years after the launch of NASA's Psyche mission, while en route to its 2026 flyby of Mars.
The Psyche mission is led by Arizona State University. NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is responsible for mission management, operations and navigation. NASA's Launch Services program at Kennedy Space Center is responsible for launch vehicle review and approval and manages launch services for the Psyche mission. Launch Services plans to certify SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket in early 2023 after two and a half years of work for the agency's most complex and high-priority missions.
Psyche is the 14th mission selected as part of NASA's Discovery Program, which is managed by Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama.
JPL manages DSOC for NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate's Technology Demonstration Mission Program and Space Operations Mission Directorate's Space Communications and Navigation Program. DSOC will bring optical communications into deep space for the first time and lay the foundation for higher data transmission rates for future robotic and human missions to Mars and beyond.