The asteroid (16) Psyche may be the metal-rich remnant of a differentiated planetesimal, or it may be a highly reduced, metal-rich asteroidal material that never differentiated. The NASA Psyche mission aims to determine Psyche’s provenance. How did we choose the science instruments we’d need, when there was not even a photo of the surface, and how are we preparing the team to interpret the data with an open mind? I’ll describe the current state of knowledge about the possible solar system regions of origin for Psyche prior to its implantation into the asteroid belt, the physical and chemical processes that can enrich metal in an asteroid, and possible meteoritic analogs. Then, I’ll show the process our science team is going through to prepare us to produce the best possible science once the spacecraft arrives at the asteroid.

Lindy Elkins-Tanton is a planetary scientist and the Principal Investigator of the NASA Psyche space mission. She is Director of the University of California, Berkeley Space Sciences Laboratory. Previously, she held positions at Arizona State University, the Carnegie Institution for Science, and MIT. Elkins-Tanton's research concerns the formation and evolution of rocky planets and the art and science of creating effective teams and of future-facing educational practices. Asteroid (8252) Elkins-Tanton is named for her, as is the mineral elkinstantonite. She is a member of the National Academy of Sciences. Elkins-Tanton received her B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. from MIT. Her book Mission Ready: How to Build Teams that Perform under Pressure will be released in April, 2026.