Wahana Psyche NASA Rekam Foto Langka Mars Saat Manuver Gravity Assist – Media Indonesia

NASA’s Psyche spacecraft captured rare images of Mars on May 15, 2026, as it performed a gravity assist maneuver to increase its speed toward its primary destination, a metal asteroid. The spacecraft passed within approximately 2,800 miles of the Martian surface at 15:28 US time, a distance noted as being closer than the trajectory of the Artemis II mission when it passed the Moon.

The images obtained during the flyby depict Mars as a bright, expanding crescent. According to reporting from Media Indonesia, scientists believe this specific visual appearance was caused by the scattering of sunlight on dust within the Martian atmosphere.

Scientific Instrument Testing

The close approach provided a critical opportunity for the mission team to verify the functionality of the spacecraft’s scientific tools before it reaches the asteroid 16 Psyche. Lindy Elkins-Tanton, the principal investigator for the Psyche mission from the University of California, Berkeley, described the event as a significant training exercise for the probe’s hardware.

This is truly a beautiful moment for all instruments to practice

Lindy Elkins-Tanton

Among the tools tested was the near-infrared imaging camera. Beyond hardware calibration, the scientific team used the flyby to search for the existence of thin dust rings around Mars, which may have originated from the planet’s small moons.

David Williams, the deputy imaging team lead from Arizona State University, stated that the quality of the photographs was high enough to capture the planet’s diverse geological features. Williams noted that the imagery truly covers the entire geology of Mars.

Mission Timeline and Trajectory

The Psyche spacecraft was launched in 2023 and is currently on a long-duration journey totaling 2.2 billion miles. The use of Mars’ gravity to accelerate the craft is a strategic maneuver designed to shorten the travel time to the target asteroid.

The mission’s current schedule includes the following milestones:

• Launch: 2023
• Mars Gravity Assist: May 15, 2026
• Estimated Arrival at Asteroid: August 2029

The mission aims to study the metal-rich asteroid 16 Psyche, providing insights into the early formation of planetary cores. The successful execution of the Mars flyby ensures that the spacecraft’s imaging and sensing equipment is fully operational for the final phase of the journey.