Year on Psyche Simulation – UArk – D

INSTITUTION

University of Arkansas (UArk)

CLASS

Iridium Class (2024 – 2025)

STUDENT TEAM

Amber Morton
Cassandra Smith, Computer Science
Jacob Round, Computer Science
Lei Taylor
Margaret Pedro Milne, Computer Science
Vishal Jeyam, Computer Science

ACADEMIC GUIDANCE

 

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

The NASA Psyche mission is an orbiter mission to the metal-rich asteroid, Psyche, in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. The spacecraft, which launched in October 2023 and will arrive at the asteroid in mid-2029, will study the asteroid from orbit and will not land on the surface. The asteroid Psyche has many unique characteristics, such as its hypothesized mixed metal composition and surface characteristics, its potato-like shape, its very short day, its very long year, and the fact that it rotates like a wheel or a rotisserie, rather than like a top, to name a few. In this project, the team will create an engaging visualization, simulation, or animation to help the public understand these interesting qualities and to demonstrate how they impact things like the days, seasons, and temperatures on Psyche’s surface.

This work was created in partial fulfillment of the University of Arkansas Capstone Course “CSCE 45601”. The work is a result of the Psyche Student Collaborations component of NASA’s Psyche Mission (https://psyche.asu.edu). “Psyche: A Journey to a Metal World” [Contract number NNM16AA09C] is part of the NASA Discovery Program mission to solar system targets. Trade names and trademarks of ASU and NASA are used in this work for identification only. Their usage does not constitute an official endorsement, either expressed or implied, by Arizona State University or National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of ASU or NASA.