New York (Web Desk): NASA’s Psyche mission has passed very close to Mars, a maneuver during which the spacecraft is expected to gain additional speed from the planet’s gravity.
The maneuver was carried out to help the spacecraft continue its journey toward its final destination—the large metallic asteroid known as “Psyche,” considered one of the most massive of its kind in the solar system.
According to experts, the asteroid may be a fragment of the core of an early, ancient planet, and its study is expected to provide valuable insights into the formation of the solar system.
The Psyche mission was launched in October 2023 and is currently traveling a distance of about 2.2 billion miles.
It is expected that the spacecraft will reach its target in about three years, in the outer region of the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, where it will conduct a detailed study of this unique celestial body.