Asteroid 16 Psyche, a metal-rich world roughly 225 kilometres wide orbiting between Mars and Jupiter, may contain extraordinary amounts of iron and nickel — enough that back-of-the-envelope estimates

Key Points:

• Asteroid 16 Psyche is an unusually large, metal-rich asteroid in the main belt between Mars and Jupiter, estimated to contain vast amounts of iron and nickel, leading to a theoretical metal value of about $10,000 quadrillion, far exceeding the global economy.
• This valuation is a thought experiment rather than a practical market estimate, as factors like extraction costs, market supply impacts, and the asteroid's remote location make mining and selling its metals economically unfeasible with current technology.
• NASA's Psyche mission, launched in October 2023 and expected to arrive in 2029, aims to study the asteroid's composition, surface features, and magnetic properties to understand whether it is a remnant planetary core or a mixed metal-rock body shaped by collisions.
• Recent research suggests Psyche is not a solid metal core but a heterogeneous body with metal-rich patches mixed with silicates, complicating simple valuations and highlighting the asteroid's scientific importance over its potential economic value.
• The mission's goal is to provide insights into planetary formation processes during the early solar system by examining Psyche's structure and history, emphasizing its value as a scientific subject rather than a commercial resource.