NASA's Psyche will slingshot around Mars May 15 2026
NASA's Psyche spacecraft is about to slingshot around Mars on May 15, 2026, picking up speed thanks to the planet's gravity.
The probe will fly just 4,500km above Mars, closer than its moons, and accelerate to nearly 20,000km per hour, all without using extra fuel.
This clever move sets Psyche up for its big journey toward a unique metal asteroid.
Psyche bound for asteroid 16 Psyche
After the Mars flyby, Psyche will head for asteroid 16 Psyche—a massive chunk of nickel and iron that might be the exposed core of an ancient protoplanet.
While passing Mars, NASA will also calibrate instruments: one checks how Mars's magnetic field interacts with solar particles; another tracks cosmic rays.
Plus, the team hopes to spot any faint dusty ring, or torus, around Mars formed by dust kicked up by micrometeorite strikes on Phobos and Deimos.
This flyby saves time and fuel and gets Psyche ready for exploring a world we've never seen up close.