@NASA: Follow @NASASolarSystem for live updates as our Psyche mission slingshots around Mars! Learn more about the asteroid ex…
Summary
NASA's Psyche spacecraft is performing a gravity assist flyby of Mars on May 15 to gain speed and adjust its trajectory toward the metal-rich asteroid Psyche. The mission will begin studying the asteroid in 2029.
View Cached Full Text
Cached at: 05/16/26, 07:22 PM
Follow @NASASolarSystem for live updates as our Psyche mission slingshots around Mars! Learn more about the asteroid explorer: https://science.nasa.gov/mission/psyche/
Psyche
Source: https://science.nasa.gov/mission/psyche/ Featured Video
Psyche To Swing By Mars for Crucial Maneuver
On Friday, May 15, NASA’s Psyche spacecraft will get a boost from Mars, flying close to the Red Planet to harness its gravitational pull. The maneuver will speed up and steer Psyche toward the metal-rich asteroid of the same name, one of the more unusual objects in our solar system, which the mission will begin studying in 2029.
Learn More About the Mars Encounter at the Psyche Mission Blog
NASA Solar System (@NASASolarSystem): Right now, NASA’s #MissionToPsyche is approaching Mars.
Current distance: 29,780 miles Current speed relative to Mars: 10,340 mph
This simulated view, based on actual trajectory data, comes from our Eyes on the Solar System experience.
Ride along:
Similar Articles
A Probe Took Incredible Pictures of Mars on Its Way to a Far-Off Asteroid
NASA's Psyche probe performed a flyby of Mars, using gravity assist to boost its speed toward the asteroid Psyche. The spacecraft captured detailed images of the Martian surface and calibrated its instruments.
NASA's Psyche spacecraft returns unfamiliar views of a familiar world
NASA's Psyche spacecraft captured unfamiliar crescent views of Mars during a flyby, offering rare perspectives and calibration data for its instruments before its primary mission to asteroid Psyche.
@NASASpox: From the @space_station to deep space, it's been a busy week at @NASA. Swearing in @NASADepAdmin Psyche captures stunni…
NASA's weekly update highlights the swearing-in of a deputy administrator, new Mars images from Psyche, a successful ISS delivery, and an upcoming Moon base update.
@NASASpox: Another week, another step towards achieving the near-impossible at @NASA! Moon Base mission update Artemis III assembl…
NASA shares a weekly update covering Artemis III assembly milestones, a spacewalk by astronauts Jessica and Anil, and updates from the solar system's edge.
After 11 years at Mars, NASA's MAVEN spacecraft went out with a whisper
NASA's MAVEN spacecraft, which studied the Martian atmosphere for 11 years, has been officially declared lost after losing contact in December 2025 when it disappeared behind Mars during a routine occultation. Telemetry fragments recovered later showed the spacecraft was spinning at 2.7 RPM, suggesting an unrecoverable power failure.