JPL
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
JPL Logo
JPL Logo
Image

Psyche's Mission Plan

Sept. 1, 2023

NASA's Psyche spacecraft takes a spiral path to the asteroid Psyche, as depicted in this graphic that shows the path from above the plane of the planets, labeled with key milestones of the prime mission. The test periods for NASA's Deep Space Optical Communications (DSOC) technology demonstration are indicated with red dots.

This graphic has been updated to reflect a launch scheduled for October 2023.

After launch, the Psyche spacecraft is expected to fly by Mars in May 2026. (The spacecraft's trajectory from Earth to the asteroid is shown in dark purple.) Harnessing the Red Planet's gravity, Psyche will use the speed at which Mars travels around the Sun to increase the spacecraft's own speed and change its direction without using much propellant. This effect is similar to how a ball thrown at a moving train will bounce off the train in another direction at a higher speed.

Psyche will travel into the main asteroid belt, where the gravity of its namesake asteroid is expected to capture the spacecraft in July 2029. The spacecraft's orbital operations start in August 2029 (marked here as "Psyche arrival").

The spacecraft's various orbits around the asteroid are named alphabetically from highest (A) to lowest (D), but they don't proceed in alphabetical order. Rather, they proceed based on the changing amount of sunlight illuminating the asteroid's surface during observation and the kind of science that can be done. Because sunlight will illuminate less and less of the asteroid's surface when the first part of Orbit B begins, this orbit is split into two parts, B1 and B2, so that the spacecraft can complete its mapping of the asteroid. A black-and-white arc around the outer edge of the graphic shows how much of the surface will be illuminated during the spacecraft's time at the asteroid.

Arizona State University leads the Psyche mission. A division of Caltech in Pasadena, NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is responsible for the mission's overall management, system engineering, integration and test, and mission operations. Maxar Technologies in Palo Alto, California, provided the high-power solar electric propulsion spacecraft chassis.

JPL also is providing DSOC, which will fly on Psyche in order to test high-data-rate laser communications that could be used by future NASA missions.

For more information about NASA's Psyche mission, go to:
http://www.nasa.gov/psyche or https://psyche.asu.edu/

Download JPG
Download TIFF
Mission
Target
  • Psyche (Asteroid)
Spacecraft
  • Psyche
Credit
NASA/JPL-Caltech

Keep Exploring

Psyche Orbital Operations

Psyche Launch Ascent Timeline

Psyche Mission Team at JPL

Psyche Undergoes Vibration Testing

Psyche Spacecraft en Route to the Asteroid Belt (Artist's Concept)

Preparing for Psyche's Array Test Deployment

NASA's Psyche: Solar Arrays Stowed for Launch

Psyche Ramping up to Launch

Home Stretch to Launch for Psyche

NASA's Psyche: Picking up Launch Prep for 2023

Related Topics

News .

NASA’s Psyche Mission on Track for Liftoff Next Month

News .

NASA to Discuss Psyche Asteroid Mission, Optical Communications Demo

News .

New Video Series Reveals What Drives NASA’s Psyche Mission Team

News .

Huge Solar Arrays Permanently Installed on NASA’s Psyche Spacecraft

News .

NASA’s Psyche Mission Enters Home Stretch Before Launch

News .

Review Board: NASA-JPL Psyche Progress Outstanding, Launch on Track

News .

Webb Looks for Fomalhaut’s Asteroid Belt and Finds Much More

Mission .

Psyche

Mission .

Near-Earth Object Surveyor

Mission .

Near Earth Asteroid Scout

About JPL
Who We Are
Executive Council
Directors
Careers
Internships
The JPL Story
JPL Achievements
Documentary Series
Annual Reports
JPL Plan: 2023-2026
Missions
Current
Past
Future
All
News
All
Earth
Solar System
Stars and Galaxies
Subscribe to JPL News
Galleries
Images
Videos
Audio
Podcasts
Apps
Visions of the Future
Slice of History
Robotics at JPL
Events
Lecture Series
Team Competitions
Speakers Bureau
Calendar
Visit
Public Tours
Virtual Tour
Directions and Maps
Topics
JPL Life
Solar System
Mars
Earth
Climate Change
Exoplanets
Stars and Galaxies
Robotics
More
Asteroid Watch
NASA's Eyes Visualizations
Universe - Internal Newsletter
Social Media
Get the Latest from JPL
Follow Us

JPL is a federally funded research and development center managed for NASA by Caltech.

More from JPL
Careers Education Science & Technology Acquisitions JPL Store
Careers
Education
Science & Technology
Acquisitions
JPL Store
Related NASA Sites
Basics of Spaceflight
Climate Kids
Earth / Global Climate Change
Exoplanet Exploration
Mars Exploration
Solar System Exploration
Space Place
NASA's Eyes Visualization Project
Voyager Interstellar Mission
NASA
Caltech
Privacy
Image Policy
FAQ
Feedback
Site Managers: Veronica McGregor, Randal Jackson
Site Editors: Tony Greicius, Naomi Hartono
CL#: 21-0018