Launching in August 2022 and arriving at the asteroid belt in 2026, NASA’s Psyche spacecraft will orbit a world we can barely pinpoint from Earth and have never visited. 

The target of NASA’s Psyche mission – a metal-rich asteroid, also called Psyche, in the main belt between Mars and Jupiter – is an uncharted world in outer space. From Earth- and space-based telescopes, the asteroid appears as a fuzzy blur. What scientists do know, from radar data, is that it’s shaped somewhat like a potato and that it spins on its side.

By analyzing light reflected off the asteroid, scientists hypothesize that asteroid Psyche is unusually rich in metal. One possible explanation is that it formed early in our solar system, either as a core of a planetesimal – a piece of a planet – or as primordial material that never melted. This mission aims to find out, and in the process of doing so, they expect to help answer fundamental questions about the formation of our solar system.

“If it turns out to be part of a metal core, it would be part of the very first generation of early cores in our solar system,” said Arizona State University’s Lindy Elkins-Tanton, who as principal investigator leads the Psyche mission. “But we don’t really know, and we won’t know anything for sure until we get there. We wanted to ask primary questions about the material that built planets. We’re filled with questions and not a lot of answers. This is real exploration.”

Elkins-Tanton led the group that proposed Psyche as a NASA Discovery-class mission; it was selected in 2017. A huge challenge, she said, was choosing the mission’s science instruments: How do you make sure you’ll get the data you need when you’re not sure of what, specifically, you’ll be measuring?

For example, to determine what exactly the asteroid is made of and whether it’s part of a planetesimal core, scientists needed instruments that could account for a range of possibilities: nickel, iron, different kinds of rock, or rock and metal mixed.

They selected a payload suite that includes a magnetometer to measure any magnetic field; imagers to photograph and map the surface, and spectrometers to indicate what the surface is made of by measuring the gamma rays and neutrons emitted from it. Scientists continue to hypothesize about what Psyche is made of, but “no one’s been able to come up with a Psyche that we can’t handle with the science instruments we have,” Elkins-Tanton said.

How to Tour an Unknown World

But before scientists can put those instruments to work, they’ll need to reach the asteroid and get into orbit. After launching from NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in August 2022, Psyche will sail past Mars nine months later, using the planet’s gravitational force to slingshot itself toward the asteroid. It’s a total journey of about 1.5 billion miles (2.4 billion kilometers).

The spacecraft will begin its final approach to the asteroid in late 2025. As the spacecraft gets closer to its target, the mission team will turn its cameras on, and the visual of asteroid Psyche will morph from the fuzzy blob we know now into high-definition, revealing surface features of this strange world for the first time. The imagery also will help engineers get their bearings as they prepare to slip into orbit in January 2026. The spacecraft’s initial orbit is designed to be at a high, safe altitude – about 435 miles (700 kilometers) above the asteroid’s surface.

During this first orbit, Psyche’s mission design and navigation team will be laser-focused on measuring the asteroid’s gravity field, the force that will keep the spacecraft in orbit. With an understanding of the gravity field, the team can then safely navigate the spacecraft closer and closer to the surface as the science mission is carried out in just under two years.

Psyche appears to be lumpy, wider across (173 miles, or 280 kilometers, at its widest point) than it is from top to bottom, with an uneven distribution of mass. Some parts may be less dense, like a sponge, and some may be more tightly packed and more massive. The parts of Psyche with more mass will have higher gravity, exerting a stronger pull on the spacecraft.

To solve the gravity-field mystery, the mission team will use the spacecraft’s telecommunications system. By measuring subtle changes in the X-band radio waves bouncing back and forth between the spacecraft and the large Deep Space Network antennas around Earth, engineers can precisely determine the asteroid’s mass, gravity field, rotation, orientation, and wobble.

The team has been working up scenarios and has devised thousands of “possible Psyches” – simulating variations in the asteroid’s density and mass, and orientation of its spin axis – to lay the groundwork for the orbital plan. They can test their models in supercomputer simulations, but there’s no way to know for sure until the spacecraft gets there.

Over the following 20 months, the spacecraft will use its gentle electric propulsion system to dip into lower and lower orbits. Measurements of the gravity field will grow more precise as the spacecraft gets closer, and images of the surface will become higher resolution, allowing the team to improve their understanding of the body. Eventually, the spacecraft will establish a final orbit about 53 miles (85 kilometers) above the surface.

It’s all to solve the riddles of this unique asteroid: Where did Psyche come from, what is it made of, and what does it tell us about the formation of our solar system?

“Humans have always been explorers,” Elkins-Tanton said. “We’ve always set out from where we are to find out what is over that hill. We always want to go farther; we always want to imagine. It’s inherent in us. We don’t know what we’re going to find, and I’m expecting us to be entirely surprised.”

The University of Texas at El Paso will enhance the capacity of the regional and national cybersecurity workforce, thanks to a renewed commitment from the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). UTEP’s CyberCorps Scholarship for Service (SFS) program, designed to prepare cybersecurity professionals who can improve the nation’s security and economic competitiveness, has received a $4 million grant from NSF and DHS. 

UTEP’s original SFS program started in 2016 and has produced 30 graduates, all of whom have secured jobs in the cybersecurity sector with governmental entities.

“This renewal award will support over 35 graduate students in computer science (CS) and software engineering who will enter the government workforce with the knowledge and skills to transfer state-of-the-art cybersecurity techniques and approaches into practice,” said Salamah Salamah, Ph.D., associate professor and chair of UTEP’s Department of Computer Science.

The renewal of the CyberCorps scholarships program at UTEP will result in the support of highly qualified students, with an emphasis on Hispanic and female students. With the original and the new SFS program, the CS department at UTEP has supported 39 students, with 39% of those students being females and 85% Hispanic. 

David Reyes, a doctoral candidate in computer science, has been part of the SFS program since its inception.

“It has been an amazing opportunity,” Reyes said. “Before this program, I was a teaching assistant. So, it was sometimes difficult having to grade exams and keep up with my own coursework. Now, I can focus completely and dedicate my time directly to my studies.”

SFS Scholars receive full tuition, $6,000 for travel, research materials and supplies, a laptop, books, professional training and certifications, and an annual stipend ($34,000 as graduate students and $25,000 as undergraduates). In return, they commit to serving in a government cybersecurity position for some time equal to the number of years funded by the program.

“If you are really interested in cybersecurity and you want to learn new things and do some interesting work and have a passion for it, you should definitely apply,” said Reyes, who is scheduled to graduate in December 2022.

“UTEP is uniquely positioned to contribute to efforts to improve diversity in the cybersecurity workforce due to the population it serves, which includes Hispanic, first-generation, and lowest income quartile students,” Salamah said.

Over the past five years, UTEP has made significant advances in the development of cybersecurity educational programs, research and outreach activities. These efforts have resulted in several high-profile recognitions including designation by the National Security Agency as a Center of Academic Excellence in both Cyber Defense and Cyber Operations — only one of 21 throughout the nation — as well as designation as an Army Research Lab-South remote campus in cybersecurity.

The central role of software in the operation of defense, energy, communication, transportation, and manufacturing systems makes it increasingly important that these systems are designed in a way that integrates cybersecurity principles, Salamah explained.

UTEP’s SFS scholars take part in rigorous educational programs and complement the knowledge gained in the classroom with significant involvement in cybersecurity research, training, competitions, and hands-on activities. They are also required to engage in service to the community to build cybersecurity awareness and capabilities among UTEP students and beyond.

The goals of the UTEP SFS program are:

• Recruit and retain at least 30 students into UTEP’s Master of Science in Software Engineering and the doctoral computer science programs.
• Graduate students who will enter the workforce with the ability to transfer state-of-the-art cybersecurity techniques and approaches into practice.
• Place students in government positions that utilize their knowledge and capabilities in cybersecurity, with a focus on placing graduates in federal/executive entities.
• Advance cybersecurity awareness and competencies among K-12 students and educators.