NASA is sending a spacecraft to a giant metal asteroid called "16 Psyche". The giant metal asteroid may have held the secret to how our solar system was formed.

According to USA TODAY, NASA wants to know whether the asteroid that is made of iron and nickel could be part of what was an earlier planet perhaps as large as Mars.

16 Psyche is one of the most mysterious objects in our solar system. It may be 230 million miles away from Earth, but this asteroid could be worth a small fortune.

Arizona State University researchers have reported, if the asteroid could be transported back to Earth, Elkins-Tanton calculates that the iron in 16 Psyche would be worth $10,000 quadrillion.

Assuming the market for asteroid materials is on Earth; this could cause the value of precious metals to plummet including those of Governments. Ultimately, it could lead to the collapse of the entire economy.

16 Psyche is located in the large asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. This may have started as a planet before it was partially destroyed at the time of the formation of our solar system.

The astronomers have reported that the giant metal asteroid is a 130-mile wide chunk of metal, made up of iron, nickel and a number of other rare metals, including gold platinum and copper. Lead Scientist of this mission Lindy Elkins-Tanton has reported that 16 Psyche is the only known object, and this is the only way humans will ever visit a core.

Though, NASA does not have any plan to bring the asteroid back to Earth. NASA, the space agency will explore the asteroid in the hope of understanding how planets separated into layers in their early histories.

Meanwhile, NASA's mission is targeted to launch in October 2023, arriving at the asteroid in 2030. This is followed a Mars flyby in 2025.

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