The Artifact

Hoang Nguyen

January 27th, 2025

Major: Astronomy

Genre/Medium: Digital Illustration

About the work:

I continue drawing human analogies to the mission, which to me makes the whole thing feel more personal. Here I portray both the asteroid and the spacecraft that shares its name as humanoids, reusing the design from my first piece. The asteroid is recognizable from the positioning of the skeleton, which recalls Psyche’s pose in a well-known depiction of the goddess being taken away by Eros. Likely formed from the frequent collisions in the early solar system, it is reduced to this unknowable metal core.

The mechanical sheep jumping over the frame reminds us that this isn’t a scene that has happened yet, just the android’s dream; we’re not sure yet if Psyche really is part of the core of a planetesimal or if it is differentiated at all. We follow the counterclockwise motion of the two sheep as if turning back time, taking us from the complete terrestrial planets to the mechanical sheep, like the spacecraft leaving the inner solar system, to following the organic sheep, as if chasing the asteroid of the same name, to the cores of the terrestrial planets—what the asteroid could have become and what we might learn about the planets from it.

The Moon at the top of the frame, another witness of the chaotic early solar system, mirrors the eyes of the android and watches over this scene, a portrait of someone who is now forgotten to us.

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Psyche Inspired is a program that brings undergraduate students from any discipline or major together to share the excitement, innovation, and scientific and engineering content of NASA’s Psyche mission with the public in new ways through artistic and creative works. This year’s Psyche Inspired cohort is known as the Iridium Class. These works are posted in the gallery and highlighted on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. View the full resolution images in the image gallery. There are many ways to get involved with NASA’s Psyche mission. Learn how you can be a part of the Psyche mission through our “Get Involved” pages at https://psyche.asu.edu/get-involved/ and https://science.nasa.gov/mission/psyche/ways-to-participate/. To learn more about the overall Psyche mission, visit nasa.gov/psyche or jpl.nasa.gov/missions/psyche.

Date Added: 01-27-2025
Credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech/ASU/Hoang Nguyen - Psyche Inspired

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