NASA To Explore Asteroid The Size Of Massachusetts
HOUSTON (CBS) – Some wicked exciting news in the field of space exploration: NASA is preparing to visit an asteroid that's roughly the size of Massachusetts.
The trip to 16 Psyche in the asteroid belt is especially notable because the object is believed to contain $10,000,000,000,000,000,000 (that's 10,000 quadrillion) worth of iron and precious metals.
.@NASA is planning to send an unmanned spacecraft to uncover the mystery behind an asteroid that may contain a treasure trove of minerals. pic.twitter.com/CpvXX16vdR
— CBS Mornings (@CBSMornings) January 19, 2017
"We've been to all the different planets, we've been to other asteroids, but we've never visited a body that has been made of entirely metal," Psyche mission project scientist Carol Polanskey tells CBS This Morning.
There are no plans to bring any of those metals back to Earth. Scientists are hoping to learn more about how Earth and other planets in the system were formed by studying 16 Psyche's core.
A robotic spacecraft will launch for 16 Psyche in 2023 and take about seven years to get there.