The probe that visits the asteroid Psyche bears the same name, and the period that is suitable for its launch will end on October 11, 2022. However, in the current situation, it is certainly not possible to do all the remaining work so far, as the flight control software has been delayed and the probe testing cannot be completed on time, it simply takes more time for the controllers to be sure that the software is working properly in flight. . The software was developed during the pandemic period, with hundreds working to get both the probe and the software ready despite the multitude of obstacles and circumstances.
In the light of these developments, a committee of inquiry independent of NASA (composed of scientists, government and aerospace experts) will assess the following options, including material, for the probe.
A NASA report according to the start of testing, it was revealed that there is a compatibility issue between the software and the test unit, which has delayed the start-up time from August to the end of September, although the bug has not been fixed enough. The Psyche probe would travel to the asteroids with a swing maneuver using the gravity of Mars, but only with a probe launched at a specific time can it get close to Mars, otherwise it will no longer push the probe to the right place. There is a suitable period in 2023 and 2024 as well, but even with these, the probe would be much late, by 2029 and 2030 it would only reach the asteroid instead of the originally planned 2026.
The cost of the entire mission (including the missile) is $ 985 million, of which $ 717 million has been spent so far, and the additional costs of any postponement are still being calculated. In addition to the Psyche probe, NASA would have launched two other missions with the same rocket, which will need to be redesigned in the near future.
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