The spacecraft, roughly the size of a small van, is due to reach the asteroid in August 2029.
Asteroid Psyche measures roughly 173 miles (279 km) across at its widest point and resides on the outer fringes of the main asteroid belt between the planets Mars and Jupiter.
After reaching the asteroid, the spacecraft would then orbit it for 26 months, scanning Psyche with instruments built to measure its gravity, magnetic proprieties and composition.
'OUTER SPACE TO EXPLORE INNER SPACE'[1/4]A SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket lifts off carrying a NASA spacecraft to investigate the Psyche asteroid from the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Florida, U.S., October 13, 2023.
It also marks the first dedicated NASA launch on a Falcon Heavy rocket furnished by Elon Musk's SpaceX company, and the first interplanetary mission flown by the Falcon Heavy.
Persons:
Lindy Elkins, Tanton, Lucy, Steve Gorman, Will Dunham
Organizations:
NASA, SpaceX, NASA's Kennedy Space Center, Jet Propulsion Laboratory, JPL, Kennedy Space Center, Arizona State University, Elon Musk's SpaceX, Thomson
Locations:
Florida, NASA's, Cape Canaveral, Los Angeles, Cape Canaveral , Florida, U.S