When NASA’s mission finally arrives at the coveted Psyche asteroid site in six years, it may find its target covered in a rust-like substance.
Previous observations suggest that the asteroid, which measures 140 miles (225 kilometers) in diameter and is 2.2 billion miles from Earth, contains large amounts of metals such as iron and nickel. Some previous research found that Psyche does not reflect light and may not be as dense as a massive metal object should be. To get to the bottom of this celestial mystery, NASA, along with several prominent universities, used the James Webb Space Telescope to further explore Psyche.
The resulting paper, currently available as a preprint and scheduled for publication at the American Astronomical Society’s. Journal of Planetary Sciencescientists suggest that the unusual appearance may be due to the presence of hydroxyl—a chemical group that is one hydrogen atom away from water. Among these chemicals is hydroxide, which, combined with iron, forms rust. The data also shows that there is water on the surface of Psyche. JWST is equipped with instruments that measure light in the infrared range, which is invisible to humans.
Because of the composition of Psyche, scientists have suggested that it may be a remnant of a planetesimal—the original structure of a planet. However, the possible presence of hydroxyl and water introduces uncertainty into this theory.
“Continuous water supply [internally sourced] may suggest that Psyche is not a remnant of a protoplanet,” said Anicia Arredondo, a planetary scientist at the Southwest Research Institute and co-author of the study, in a statement. “Instead, it may suggest that Psyche evolved beyond the ‘ice,’ the small distance from the Sun where the temperatures of the protoplanetary disc are low enough for volatile compounds to coalesce into solids, before migrating to the outer main belt.”
The details are far from conclusive, as it is not clear whether the hydroxyl and water belong to the Psyche people, or if they arrived during influences from other celestial bodies.
Psyche has been the subject of interest because of its metallic composition and possible origins. NASA launched the spacecraft, renamed Psyche, in October 2023 to study the asteroid. Once at its destination, the Psyche probe will conduct extensive tests of its namesake target, looking for evidence of an ancient magnetic field and determining its chemical and mineral composition. The hope is that Psyche can be an example of how terrestrial planets, like Earth, form in their infancy.
“Our understanding of the evolution of the solar system is closely related to the interpretation of asteroid formation, especially M-class asteroids that contain high concentrations of iron,” said Stephanie Jarmak, a physicist at Harvard & Smithsonian’s Center for Astrophysics who led the study.
It will be some time before scientists get close enough to Psyche to double-check the JWST data. Despite traveling at more than 27 miles (44.5 kilometers) per second, Psyche (the spacecraft) will not collide with Psyche (the asteroid) until August 2029.
Source link
