NASA's Psyche Probe Accelerates Toward the Asteroid Belt

NASA's Psyche probe is accelerating toward the metallic asteroid Psyche, following a successful gravitational assist from Mars. During the first leg of the journey, initiated in October 2023, the mission used its electric propulsion system intermittently to position itself correctly and leverage Mars' gravity for a speed boost and trajectory adjustment ^1,2.

Propulsion system

The Psyche probe's propulsion system is powered by solar energy and uses electromagnetic fields to provide a constant force of up to 250 millinewtons. This value is equivalent to the weight of an AA battery in hand. The mechanism employed is known as the Hall effect, where ions of the gas xenon are expelled to generate thrust and a characteristic blue glow ^1,2.

The probe began using its propulsion system almost continuously starting from September 28, with weekly pauses for communication with Earth. This regime keeps the mission on track for an encounter with the asteroid Psyche in the main asteroid belt, scheduled for the summer of 2029 ^1,2.

The probe's four thrusters operate one at a time, generating a small but constant thrust. This thrust accumulates over the journey, allowing the probe to gain speed as it traverses interplanetary space ¹.