'Treasure Asteroid Exploration Worth 1000 Trillion Won' Postponed [Reading Science]

NASA Delays from August 1 to October Due to Software Glitch
Considering Asteroid Orbit, Postponement to 2023-2024 Also Under Review
'Treasure Asteroid' Existence Likely Confirmed Only After 2029

Imaginary illustration of Psyche asteroid exploration. Photo by NASA

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) of the United States has tentatively postponed the launch of the 'treasure asteroid 16 Psyche' probe, which was scheduled for August 1. The asteroid is known to be composed of precious metals valued at up to '100 quadrillion dollars' based on optical and radar observations. The 'movie-like' attempt to directly visit and confirm the presence of minerals has been delayed, causing disappointment.

Space mineral extraction from the Moon or asteroids has been gaining increasing interest recently as Earth's resources are depleting. The American comedy film "Don't Look Up," released in December last year, featured 'space mineral mining' as its theme.

NASA originally planned to launch the Psyche probe on August 1 aboard SpaceX's large space launch vehicle Falcon Heavy, but the launch was postponed due to delays in software development. The development of the navigation system software, which sets and controls the probe's target trajectory, was delayed by several months. Additionally, problems arose during the integration process between the software developed by satellite manufacturer Maxar and the software operated by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL).

Psyche spacecraft. Photo by NASA

NASA has announced that the launch will be postponed to after September 20, but it is known that the earliest possible launch date is October 11. The launch was originally scheduled for 2023 but was advanced by one year due to smooth development progress. After launch, the probe was expected to travel 370 million kilometers over 3 years and 6 months, arriving around January 2026 to begin full-scale exploration. NASA is also considering postponing the launch until 2023?2024, taking into account the asteroid's orbit to optimize observation conditions. If this happens, the Psyche exploration would likely only be possible around 2029.

More attention is drawn to the '16 Psyche' asteroid than to the probe's launch delay. NASA decided to explore this asteroid after adopting ideas submitted by scientists in 2017. Located in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, this asteroid is about 226 km in diameter, roughly the size of Massachusetts (area 21,383 km²). Unlike other asteroids generally composed of ice and rock, it is expected to be made up of valuable minerals such as iron, nickel, and gold.

Impression of asteroid '16 Psyche'. Photo by NASA

Radar observations show that it has a much higher density than typical asteroids, and optical observations through the Hubble Space Telescope reveal a very bright light, suggesting it is composed of metallic materials. Some analyses estimate the economic value of this asteroid to be as high as 100 quadrillion dollars, assuming it contains large amounts of rare metals such as rare earth elements. Scientists believe this is a case where the rocky layers were stripped away by early collisions during the asteroid's formation, exposing a metal core.