A NASA spacecraft has set out on its six-year journey to a rare metal-covered asteroid. The Psyche mission aboard SpaceX's Falcon Heavy launched from NASA's Kennedy Space Center Friday morning toward ...

When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission. Proof that metal-spewing vents caused Psyche's metallic sheen includes metal flows — akin to ...

Asteroid mining has moved from science fiction pitch decks into serious technical studies, but the gap between concept and commercial reality remains wide. A new wave of research is trying to quantify ...

The spacecraft is en route to a metal-rich asteroid. Hopefully, its backup propellant line can get it there by August 2029. Reading time 3 minutes Less than two years after launch, NASA’s Psyche ...

Science fiction dreams of mining riches from asteroids only make sense if humans can make it worth their time and effort. The new Planetary Resources group backed by Silicon Valley billionaires and ...

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- NASA's Psyche spacecraft rocketed away Friday on a six-year journey to a rare metal-covered asteroid. Most asteroids tend to be rocky or icy, and this is the first exploration ...

China’s Tianwen-2 asteroid sample return mission is set to launch this month, May 2025, en route to the asteroid Kamoʻoalewa (2016 HO3). The country could join the United States and Japan, whose space ...

(The Conversation is an independent and nonprofit source of news, analysis and commentary from academic experts.) Several space missions have flown by asteroids before and gotten a peek at their ...