On October 13, at 10:19 AM Eastern (07:19 AM Pacific), of NASA mental illness Task started successfully At SpaceX Falcon Heavy A rocket from Launch Pad 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. The spacecraft is now on a rendezvous with the M-type asteroid of the same name, an object in the main asteroid belt made almost entirely of metal. This metallic asteroid is thought to be a remnant of planets that lost their outer layers, leaving behind a core of iron-nickel and precious metals. By studying this material, scientists hope to learn more about the formation of rocky planets.
About five minutes later, the rocket’s second stage fairings separated and the first stage boosters returned to Earth. About an hour into the flight, the payload separated from the second stage and reached orbit. The mental illness The spacecraft then entered safe mode while ground controllers waited to receive a signal from the spacecraft. At 11:50 AM Eastern (08:50 AM Pacific), mental illness Established two-way communications with NASA Deep space network (DSN) complex and initial telemetry reports showed the spacecraft to be in good health.
Lindy Elkins-Daunton, principal investigator mental illness Work at Arizona State University (ASU), Said:
„We’ve said 'goodbye’ to our spacecraft, the center of so much work over the years – thousands of people and a decade. But it’s not really a finish line; it’s the starting line of the next marathon. Our spacecraft is on its way to meet our asteroid, and we’ll fill another gap in our knowledge – and Let’s fill in the color on another kind of world in our solar system.”
The first 100 days of the mission will be the initial check-out period, where mission controllers will test all flight systems to ensure they are in working order. An important part of this phase is testing Solar powered (SEP) system, a solar-powered ion propulsion system. This highly fuel-efficient system relies on electromagnetic fields to charge neutral gas atoms and accelerate them to create thrust. Before the mission takes off, mission controllers need to know that the electric thrusters are ready to fire continuously for long stretches of the trajectory.
mental illnessIn May 2026 its flight path will pass Mars, providing a gravity-assisted maneuver, allowing it to rendezvous. Paishe In the main asteroid belt by August 2029. Once there, it will enter orbit around the 279-km-wide (173 mi) asteroid and begin its 26-month science mission. Take the plane Six years And the spacecraft will pass 3.6 billion km (2.2 billion miles) or 24 astronomical units (AUs) – the distance between Earth and the Sun. NASA Administrator Bill Nelson said After successful launch:
„Congratulations mental illness In a successful launch, the team is the first trip to a metal-rich asteroid. While testing technology that could be used in future NASA missions, the Psych mission could provide humanity with new information about planet formation. As Asteroid Autumn continues, so does NASA’s commitment to exploring the unknown and inspiring the world through discovery.”
Once in orbit, mental illness The metallic asteroid will be studied using state-of-the-art scientific instruments including a magnetometer, a gamma-ray and neutron spectrometer, and a multispectral imager. While the instruments will undergo a series of tests in about six weeks, the imager will take its first images, targeting fixed stars and star clusters with different filters at different exposures. Later, the Psych team will implement an automatic feed to a publicly viewable website, where people can view the raw images obtained during the work.
The spacecraft also carries an experiment Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) tool. The demonstrator will test optical communications technology that could provide future missions with more bandwidth to transmit data than traditional radio frequency communications. Mission controllers expect the first opportunity to activate and test the optical communications system in about three weeks. mental illness It is approximately 7.5 million km (4.7 million mi) from Earth. said Dr. Prasun Desai, Associate Administrator for NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD):
„Starting with Psyche is a great platform to demonstrate NASA’s optical communications goal of getting high-bandwidth data into deep space. It’s exciting to know that in just a few short weeks, Deep Space Optical Communications will begin sending data back to Earth to test this critical capability for the future of space exploration. The insights we learn, these It will help advance innovative new technologies and, ultimately, pursue bolder goals in space.
This is the first time NASA has tested high-bandwidth, high-data-rate optical communications beyond the Moon. These technologies enable mental illness It is more revealing to acquire blocks of data (images, spectra and magnetic measurements). mental illnessA combination of “Excited to see the treasure of science mental illness „Opening will be NASA’s first mission to a metallic world,” said Nicola Fox, associate administrator of the Space Operations Directorate at NASA Headquarters. By studying asteroid Psyche, we hope to gain a better understanding of our universe and our place in it, especially the mysterious and elusive metallic core of our home planet Earth.
read more: NASA
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