NASA’s Psyche Mission Aces Mars Flyby, Targets Metal-Rich Asteroid
NASA's Psyche mission successfully completed a flyby of Mars on May 15, 2026, using the planet's gravity to adjust its trajectory towards the metal-rich asteroid Psyche. The spacecraft came within 2,864 miles of Mars, gaining a significant speed boost without using onboard propellant. The mission team confirmed that Psyche is on course for arrival at the asteroid in summer 2029 after analyzing data from the flyby.
- ▪The Psyche spacecraft approached Mars for a gravity assist, coming within 2,864 miles of the planet's surface.
- ▪The flyby provided a 1,000 mile-per-hour speed boost and adjusted the spacecraft's orbital plane by about 1 degree.
- ▪Psyche is now on track to arrive at the asteroid Psyche in summer 2029.
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5 min readNASA’s Psyche Mission Aces Mars Flyby, Targets Metal-Rich AsteroidJet Propulsion LaboratoryMay 19, 2026 Article Contents Unique Martian view Onward to asteroid Psyche More about Psyche This view of a crescent Mars was captured on May 15, 2026, at about 5:03 a.m. PDT by NASA’s Psyche mission as it approached the planet for a gravity assist. The image has been processed into a natural-color view using red, green, and blue data from the multispectral imager instrument. NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU NASA’s Psyche spacecraft completed its close approach of Mars on May 15, coming within 2,864 miles (4,609 kilometers) of the planet’s surface.
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