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NASA's Psyche Spacecraft Buzzing Mars on its Way to Rare Metal Asteroid

The NASA Vehicle Assembly Building is seen at Kennedy Space Center in Titusville, Florida, USA, 12 May 2026. EPA/CRISTOBAL HERRERA-ULASHKEVICH
The NASA Vehicle Assembly Building is seen at Kennedy Space Center in Titusville, Florida, USA, 12 May 2026. EPA/CRISTOBAL HERRERA-ULASHKEVICH
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NASA's Psyche Spacecraft Buzzing Mars on its Way to Rare Metal Asteroid

The NASA Vehicle Assembly Building is seen at Kennedy Space Center in Titusville, Florida, USA, 12 May 2026. EPA/CRISTOBAL HERRERA-ULASHKEVICH
The NASA Vehicle Assembly Building is seen at Kennedy Space Center in Titusville, Florida, USA, 12 May 2026. EPA/CRISTOBAL HERRERA-ULASHKEVICH

A NASA spacecraft chasing a rare metal asteroid swings past Mars this week for a gravity boost, snapping thousands of pictures as practice for the main encounter in 2029.

Named Psyche like the asteroid it’s after, the robotic explorer will slingshot past the red planet at 12,333 mph (19,848 kph) on Friday, The Associated Press reported.

It will be an especially close flyby, with Psyche passing within 2,800 miles (4,500 kilometers) of Mars, equivalent to the distance between the US east and west coasts. Then it will barrel toward the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter that is home to its enticing target.

All of the spacecraft’s science instruments will be on for the Mars pass. NASA’s two Mars rovers along with a small fleet of US and European orbiters will make surface and atmospheric observations at the same time for comparison.

Psyche's cameras already are photographing Mars, appearing as a crescent on approach and a nearly full sphere once it’s in the rearview mirror. The different views will serve double duty, allowing operators to fine-tune their instruments while providing “just plain beautiful photos,” Arizona State University’s Jim Bell, the imaging team leader, said in a statement.

While the asteroid belt is swarming with millions of objects, most are made of rock or ice.

Only a small percentage are thought to be metal-rich like Psyche, a potato-shaped asteroid roughly 173 miles long and 144 miles wide (278 kilometers by 232 kilometers).

Scientists suspect the asteroid may be the exposed nickel and iron core of a fledgling planet that was stripped down by cosmic collisions. Studying such an object up close can yield information about the dawn of our solar system 4.6 billion years ago, and why and how Earth spawned life.

Launched in 2023, the spacecraft is midway through its six-year roundabout journey to Psyche in the outer fringes of the asteroid belt, three times farther from the sun than Earth. It should arrive in 2029, slipping into orbit around the asteroid for two years of study. The van-sized spacecraft runs on solar electric propulsion, using xenon gas thrusters.

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Varieties

Curtain Falls on the Romance of India's Single-screen Cinemas

Researchers estimate that India had around 14,000 single-screen halls in the 1980s. Only around 2,000 remain today. Idrees MOHAMMED / AFP
Researchers estimate that India had around 14,000 single-screen halls in the 1980s. Only around 2,000 remain today. Idrees MOHAMMED / AFP
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Curtain Falls on the Romance of India's Single-screen Cinemas

Researchers estimate that India had around 14,000 single-screen halls in the 1980s. Only around 2,000 remain today. Idrees MOHAMMED / AFP
Researchers estimate that India had around 14,000 single-screen halls in the 1980s. Only around 2,000 remain today. Idrees MOHAMMED / AFP

The demolition has begun at Bengaluru's Urvashi Cinema, once a 1,200-seat movie palace where generations of filmgoers cheered and whistled, another casualty of India's vanishing single-screen era.

"The theater came up in the 1970s... I was so happy when it opened," said Manjunath, watching as seats were ripped out and strewn outside.

Manjunath, who uses one name, recalled its glory days, when the shop he runs opposite was packed with customers buying snacks before and after shows.

"That was the rush... now I have a lot of free time," he said. "But what to do? There is barely any crowd."

The peeling facades, faded signs and cavernous auditoriums of such cinemas are remnants of a time when going to the movies was itself the main event.

"It is a completely different experience," said photographer Hemant Chaturvedi, 58, who has documented what remains during a seven-year odyssey, photographing 1,350 single-screen cinemas across 1,000 towns.

His photographs capture not only the movie houses but their ornate facades and decay -- a record of a cultural landscape disappearing as cinemas are demolished, converted into multiplexes or left to crumble.

- 'Ecosystem is fading' -

"People would be cheering, jumping on the seats, even throwing money at the screen," Chaturvedi said.

The old halls offered a collective, interactive experience, with fans applauding at the hero's entrance, clapping to romantic songs and shouting at dramatic twists.

"Now that old ecosystem is fading, and the charm is being lost," he said.

India's single-screen cinemas have been steadily squeezed by multiplexes, streaming, rising property costs and the expense of maintaining ageing buildings and equipment.

Researchers estimate that India had around 14,000 single-screen halls in the 1980s. Only around 2,000 remain today.

Many of the old halls could accommodate around 1,000 people, creating a communal atmosphere rarely found in today's multiplexes.

The decline has also changed the way Indians experience films. New halls offer air conditioning, reclining seats and food delivered to the seat.

"To me, the new cinemas have lost the charm," said Chaturvedi, a former Bollywood cinematographer who worked on hit movies during a three-decade career.

"The multiplexes are a generic, cold experience."

- 'Old times' -

Some of the old cinemas have been restored and renovated, and the single-screen experience still has its devotees.

In Bengaluru, Mukunda Cinemas still draws crowds -- even for early-morning shows before work.

Hundreds lined up before dawn for a recent 6:00 am screening of the latest release of film star Yash, who is hugely popular in India's Kannada-language cinema.

Santosh, a 47-year-old businessman who uses one name, queued with hundreds of others as crowds set off fireworks outside while waiting for the show.

"Only in the single screen theaters can they take the cinema to the next level, it increases the tradition of cinema," Santosh said, as cheers and whistles reverberated through the packed hall before the film began.

Veerain Reddy, the third generation of his family running the 50-year-old theater, said maintaining the establishment "was not an easy task".

Inflation, rising costs and "so much competition" have made business tough.

"But people who are really passionate are still trying to maintain these single-screen theaters, where people come to watch and celebrate cinema," he told AFP.

Another survivor in Mumbai -- formerly known as Bombay -- is the Regal Cinema, an Art Deco hall that opened in 1933.

"The rest of them feel very artificial, commercial, very blingy," said 23-year-old fan Vanshika. "But Bombay has little places which remind us of the old times."

Varieties

GEA Chairman Announces October 21 Launch for Riyadh Season 2026

Turki Alalshikh, Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Turki Alalshikh, Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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GEA Chairman Announces October 21 Launch for Riyadh Season 2026

Turki Alalshikh, Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Turki Alalshikh, Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Chairman of the Board of Directors of the General Entertainment Authority (GEA) Turki Alalshikh announced that Riyadh Season 2026 will open on Wednesday, October 21, featuring a 10-week program of championships, concerts, performances, and entertainment experiences, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Saturday.

Alalshikh made the announcement in a promotional video previewing the season's sporting, entertainment, and arts events, which he said would reinforce Riyadh's standing as a destination for premier events and audiences from around the world.

The seventh edition's lineup includes world-class boxing and wrestling matches, UFC bouts, and the Six Kings Slam tennis tournament, alongside concerts, theatrical and comedy performances, and events designed for children and families.

Boulevard World returns as one of the season's principal zones, gathering global cultures and destinations in a single location, while Boulevard City opens with new content and Wonder Garden offers a range of rides and activities. Other zones and events include The Groves, the Farmers' Market, and the Ana Arabia exhibition at VIA Riyadh, with further programs spread across multiple locations in the capital.

The season runs under the theme "Big Time," drawing visitors from Saudi Arabia and abroad.

Varieties

New Road Lanes Open in Makkah to Ease Congestion, Aid Pilgrims

The expansion includes an additional 1.5-kilometer stretch on the Third Ring Road connecting the Prince Mutib intersection to the Grand Mosque intersection via the Prince Sultan intersection - SPA
The expansion includes an additional 1.5-kilometer stretch on the Third Ring Road connecting the Prince Mutib intersection to the Grand Mosque intersection via the Prince Sultan intersection - SPA
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New Road Lanes Open in Makkah to Ease Congestion, Aid Pilgrims

The expansion includes an additional 1.5-kilometer stretch on the Third Ring Road connecting the Prince Mutib intersection to the Grand Mosque intersection via the Prince Sultan intersection - SPA
The expansion includes an additional 1.5-kilometer stretch on the Third Ring Road connecting the Prince Mutib intersection to the Grand Mosque intersection via the Prince Sultan intersection - SPA

The Royal Commission for Makkah City and Holy Sites has opened traffic on several newly developed lanes along the Third Ring Road and Prince Saud Al Faisal Road, reducing travel times by more than 90%.

The expansion includes an additional 1.5-kilometer stretch on the Third Ring Road connecting the Prince Mutib intersection to the Grand Mosque intersection via the Prince Sultan intersection, SPA reported.

Traffic flow was also inaugurated on the final section of Prince Saud Al Faisal Road, linking the Prince Mohammed bin Salman axis to Abdulqadir Koshak Street through the Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz intersection.

These openings are part of integrated infrastructure projects designed to ease traffic congestion, improve road safety, and streamline access for residents, visitors, and pilgrims during the Hajj and Umrah seasons.