NASA's Psyche Spacecraft Just Got An Assist From Mars On The Way To Its Asteroid Namesake
NASA's Psyche spacecraft has just flown closer to Mars than the planet's own moons en route to the metallic asteroid 16 Psyche. It was a planned maneuver so that the spacecraft can get gravity assist from the red planet and conserve fuel, specifically the xenon gas propellant its solar-electric ion thruster system uses. The flyby gave Psyche a speed boost and changed its trajectory so that it's now aligned with its target asteroid's orbit around the sun.
With a speed of 12,300 mph, Psyche passed within 2,800 miles of the planet in its closest approach at approximately half past 3PM Eastern time on May 15. The Martian moon Phobos orbits the planet from 3,700 miles away, while the moon Deimos is much farther away and is located 12,470 miles above the planet's surface.
Psyche has been approaching Mars since early May and has been taking photos of the planet. From...
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