NASA’s Psyche Mission Is Headed Toward a Metal World Worth $10,000 Quadrillion

In October 2023, NASA launched one of its most intriguing deep-space missions yet — Psyche, a robotic explorer on a years-long journey to a mysterious metallic asteroid unlike anything humanity has ever visited. This strange object, named 16 Psyche, isn’t valuable because it hides alien technology or secret energy sources, but because it appears to be made largely of metal. Not just any metal — we’re talking about iron, nickel, and potentially precious metals that, on Earth, form the backbone of modern industry.

Scientists have tossed out a jaw-dropping estimate of its hypothetical worth: about $10,000 quadrillion. That’s a one followed by nineteen zeros. For perspective, the entire global economy sits around $100 trillion — meaning Psyche’s theoretical value is about 100 million times the Earth’s annual output.

Of course, no one is planning to tow the asteroid home and crash the global metals market. The Psyche mission isn’t about mining. It’s about answering one of the oldest questions we have: How do planets like ours form? And to find out, NASA is sending a probe on a journey of more than 3.6 billion kilometers toward what may be the exposed core of a failed planet.

What Makes Psyche So Special?

Most asteroids fall into one of two categories: rocky or icy. Psyche, however, seems to break this rule. Early observations from Earth-based telescopes and radar suggest that the asteroid is unusually dense and highly reflective — clues that it may be primarily metallic. This makes Psyche an outlier and a priceless scientific opportunity.

Think of it as a planetary time capsule. Billions of years ago, when the solar system was a swirling, chaotic disk of dust and gas, countless protoplanets began to form. Many collided, split apart, or never developed fully. If Psyche is the exposed core of one of these early worlds, then studying it is like looking directly at the heart of a planet — something we could never do with Earth’s own buried iron core.

Imagine trying to learn how cars work if every engine were sealed under layers of metal and you could never open the hood. Psyche, in that analogy, is an engine sitting uncovered on the shop floor.

The $10,000 Quadrillion Question

So why the mind-blowing price tag? Using current market prices for iron and nickel, scientists made a playful, hypothetical calculation: If the metals on Psyche could be extracted and if they could be brought to Earth (two things far beyond modern engineering), they’d be worth around $10 quintillion — enough to make every person on Earth a billionaire many times over.

But this is purely theoretical economics. Bringing that much metal to Earth would cause prices to collapse instantly. Gold wouldn’t be rare. Platinum wouldn’t be precious. Even iron — the backbone of global manufacturing — would suddenly be as cheap as sand. The only real marketplace where Psyche holds infinite value is science.

NASA’s interest is not in space mining, but in space knowledge.

What Psyche Hopes to Discover

The mission aims to reveal:

1. The composition of Psyche’s metal

Is it mostly iron and nickel, like Earth’s inner core? Could it contain exotic alloys? Are there trace amounts of rare metals? Instruments aboard the spacecraft — including a gamma-ray and neutron spectrometer — will scan Psyche’s “skin” to tell us precisely what it’s made of.

2. Whether Psyche has a magnetic field

Earth’s core generates our protective magnetic field. If Psyche retains traces of magnetism, it would be powerful evidence that it once behaved like a mini-planet with a molten, active interior.

3. How proto-planets evolve

By orbiting Psyche at progressively lower altitudes, the spacecraft will map its gravity, density, and geology. These clues could reshape our models of planetary birth.

A Testbed for Future Space Travel

Beyond the science, Psyche is a technological milestone. The spacecraft uses solar electric propulsion, a highly efficient form of ion propulsion that may power future missions to Mars and beyond. Instead of burning through chemical fuel, Psyche accelerates charged particles — slowly, but steadily — like a cosmic Prius that trades horsepower for extreme mileage.

NASA is also flying an experimental deep-space laser communication system, capable of transmitting data faster than traditional radio waves. Think of it as upgrading from dial-up to fiber-optic Internet — but in deep space.

When Will Psyche Arrive?

The spacecraft will reach its asteroid destination in 2030, where it will spend roughly 26 months orbiting and studying the metallic world. Over time, Psyche will descend through a series of orbital phases, each designed to reveal finer details.

Why Psyche Truly Matters

Even if humans never mine a single asteroid, Psyche represents something bigger: curiosity on a cosmic scale. We’re venturing to a world no one has seen before, one that could unlock secrets about our own origins. It’s a reminder that exploration isn’t always about profit — sometimes it’s about understanding where we came from and imagining where we might go.