You can see Mars as rarely viewed in new NASA spacecraft photos
Here's a look at what the asteroid belt-bound Psyche spacecraft photographed during its May 15 flyby over Mars.
Eric Lagatta- The spacecraft used Mars' gravity to gain a speed boost for its journey to a metal-rich asteroid.
- Psyche's ultimate destination is a metallic asteroid of the same name, which it is expected to reach by 2029.
- The mission aims to study the asteroid to learn more about Earth's own core.
A NASA spacecraft on its way to study a strange metal asteroid recently took a detour above Mars. And the striking images it captured during the interlude provide a rare and captivating look at Earth's planetary neighbor.
Most photos of Mars showcase the planet's iconic red-hued disk and its rust-colored surface.
But in May, the Psyche spacecraft caught an unusual glimpse of Mars while performing a maneuver to harness the planet's gravity and send it whizzing beyond the planet toward the main asteroid belt. Now, NASA has released some photos the vehicle captured during the rendezvous that show Mars in a new light.
Here's a look at what the Psyche spacecraft photographed during its approach toward Mars.
What is NASA's Psyche mission?
NASA's Psyche spacecraft is on a mission to a distant metal-rich asteroid of the same name.
Since launching in October 2023, the shuttle has been traveling on a six-year, 2.2 billion-mile journey to the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Its final destination is a metallic asteroid of the same name that scientists hope to study in order to glean valuable insights about Earth's own core.
Psyche captures these stunning images of Mars during May flyby
About two months after Psyche made a close approach of Mars, NASA on July 17 released some images captured during the flyby.
The photos were captured in May as Psyche came no closer than about 2,800 miles from the red planet’s surface. NASA teams then spent weeks downlinking, analyzing and processing the views of the encounter before releasing them to the public.
The results offer "rarely seen views of the red planet,” Jim Bell, the Psyche imager instrument lead at Arizona State University in Tempe, said in a statement.
See timelapse video of Mars flyby
NASA also released a timelapse video showing the Psyche spacecraft's approach to and departure from Mars.
Mars provides gravity boost to asteroid-bound vehicle
The flyby provided not just an opportunity to capture the stunning imagery, but also benefit from a valuable speed boost courtesy of Mars' gravity.
The gravity assist maneuver wasn't unlike a slingshot, propelling the Psyche spacecraft on a trajectory to arrive at the metallic main-belt asteroid Psyche by the end of 2029, NASA explained.
The Psyche spacecraft, which was whizzing at approximately 12,333 mph when it reached Mars, had already been gradually gaining speed since its launch.
But the mission team at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California needed to use the Mars flyby to harness some of the planet's gravitational forces for even more of a boost. The maneuver was also meant to give the vehicle's propulsion system a bit of a break and even save some propellant while adjusting its trajectory if needed, NASA said.
Eric Lagatta is the Space Connect reporter for the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at [email protected]