asteroid illustration. - HO / NASA / AFP

NASA will launch in 2022 a probe programmed to get as close as possible to the asteroid "Psyche 16", by 2026. The celestial body arouses the curiosity and enthusiasm of specialists about its value, which is estimated at 700 billion trillion billion dollars, or 631 quintillion euros. The fireball is indeed made of gold and other precious metals in astronomical quantities, says CNews .

The asteroid 16 Psyche is so rich in gold and other minerals that if it were to land on Earth or be exploited, theoretically it would make every human being a billionaire. Currently it would be worth quadrillion dollars. It runs its course between Venus and Mars. pic.twitter.com/Ss8yUq1EGd

- Bouteflikov ™ 📚 (@Bouteflikov) January 20, 2020

Discovered in 1852 by the Italian Annibale de Gasparis, "Psyche 16" cannot become the property of anyone. Since 1967, the Washington Space Treaty stipulates that no private or public organization can claim the possession of a celestial body. Still, in the United States, the “Space Act” promulgated in 2015 “promotes the right of American citizens to undertake the exploration and commercial exploitation of space resources”.

Analyzed from every angle

Any exploitation of the asteroid's resources is in any case not possible for several tens of thousands of years. Taking into account current prices, the value of the treasure that constitutes “Psyche 16” corresponds to 84,000 billion euros for each of the inhabitants of the earth.

After launching from Florida, the NASA probe will pass close to the planet Mars in 2023, before reaching "Psyche 16" and studying it from every angle. A 21-month period of asteroid analyzes is planned in the mission program. The fireball will be mapped and will allow great scientific advances: the study of iron nuclei, the analysis of an element entirely made of metal and the use of a new method of encoding information in photons, using l using a laser.

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  • Metals
  • Space
  • Nasa
  • Asteroid
  • science
  • Probe