NASA Makes Final Preparations to Crash Spacecraft into Asteroid
Posted: Mon Sep 19, 2022 3:21 am
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The American space agency NASA is making final preparations to crash a spacecraft into an asteroid in the world’s first planetary defense test.
The mission is called the Double Asteroid Redirection Test, or DART. The DART spacecraft launched on its trip to the asteroid last November. On September 26, it will aim to strike the asteroid to see how the crash affects the space object’s path.
The test is designed to demonstrate a possible method for changing the direction of asteroids considered threats to Earth.
The mission’s target will be an asteroid called Dimorphos, which is part of a two-body asteroid system. Dimorphos is a small “moonlet” that orbits a larger asteroid named Didymos. Didymos is about 780 meters across, while Dimorphos is 160 meters.
The American space agency NASA is making final preparations to crash a spacecraft into an asteroid in the world’s first planetary defense test.
The mission is called the Double Asteroid Redirection Test, or DART. The DART spacecraft launched on its trip to the asteroid last November. On September 26, it will aim to strike the asteroid to see how the crash affects the space object’s path.
The test is designed to demonstrate a possible method for changing the direction of asteroids considered threats to Earth.
The mission’s target will be an asteroid called Dimorphos, which is part of a two-body asteroid system. Dimorphos is a small “moonlet” that orbits a larger asteroid named Didymos. Didymos is about 780 meters across, while Dimorphos is 160 meters.