Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which NASA chairs, is outstandingly enhancing the agency's space endeavors. Engineers successfully installed one of NASA's Psyche spacecraft's two solar panels in another case.
The space agency announced the news in a press statement.
The mission's journey to the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, far from the Sun, is fraught with difficulties, necessitating the adaptation of ordinary Earth-orbiting commercial satellite technology for use in the cold and dark of deep space.
Our Psyche mission is preparing for a 1.5-billion-mile (2.4-billion-km) journey to an asteroid of the same name. At 800 sq. ft (75 sq m), its solar arrays are the largest ever installed at @NASAJPL, bringing it one step closer to its August launch. Details:https://t.co/teNPteG6P8 pic.twitter.com/e7RejzzLf6
— NASA (@NASA) March 8, 2022
Psyche's Mission Details
According to NASA's summary of the Psyche Mission, Psyche's mission entails flying 1.5 billion miles (2.4 billion kilometers) into the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter to investigate a mysterious, metal-rich asteroid of the same name.
Twin solar arrays will power the spacecraft at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Canada Flintridge, California, the biggest ever erected.
The Psyche asteroid was discovered to be one of a kind because it looks to be the exposed nickel-iron core of a planetesimal, which is one of the building elements of rocky planets like Earth.
Because experts cannot access Earth's molten core, this unique characteristic of the asteroid gives a chance to investigate how planets were formed.
Experts will use the information gained from studying the Psyche asteroid to evaluate if the asteroid should have been a component of a planet's core or whether it is unmelted material.
The information from the asteroid will also tell if tiny metal bodies contain the same light components as Earth's core, whether Psyche was produced under more oxidizing or more reducing conditions than Earth's core, and the asteroid's geography.
In a separate NASA post regarding the Psyche mission, Lindy Elkins-Tanton of Arizona State University remarked that some basic issues about the Psyche asteroid have yet to be answered.
One of two solar arrays on NASA’s Psyche spacecraft is successfully deployed in JPL’s storied High Bay 2 cleanroom. The twin arrays will power the spacecraft and its science instruments during a mission to the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
Elkins-Tanton remarked that adding details from data researchers can obtain from Earth makes it tougher to tell a coherent tale.
Elkins-Tanton also stated that they have no idea what they will see after the Psyche spacecraft locates and settles on the Psyche asteroid, but they will be shocked.
How NASA Engineers Installed The Solar Panels
The installation of the new solar arrays on the Psyche spacecraft was captured on video by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory's official YouTube account.
NASA said in the video that each of the new solar panels could open in under eight minutes. On the other hand, the arrays can only accomplish this one hour after launch.
The new Psyche solar panels ' fast-deployment function is highly efficient because it will journey into low-light portions of the solar system.
The NASA Psyche mission is scheduled to launch in August. It will then begin its trek towards Jupiter's and Mars' asteroid belts.
NASA: Our Psyche mission is preparing for a 1.5-billion-mile (2.4-billion-km) journey to an asteroid of the same name. At 800 sq. ft (75 sq m), its solar arrays are the largest ever installed at @NASAJPL, bringing it one step closer to its August launch.… pic.twitter.com/U9xReIKZ4n
— Josh (@devwithjosh) March 8, 2022
How New Solar Arrays Could Help New Spacecraft
The new solar panels placed onto the sophisticated NASA Psyche rocket will allow the agency to have adequate power after the spacecraft reaches the asteroid belt, according to a recent report from SciTech Daily.
Peter Lord, NASA Psyche Director at Maxar Technologies, said the rocket's new solar panels are identical to those used on Earth.
They are, however, more efficient in storing light energy from the sun. They're developed primarily for low-light situations, according to Peter.
This link will take you to further information about NASA's Psyche spacecraft's new solar arrays.
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