DART probe will crash into an asteroid on September 27 - the first test of Earth's protection from space objects

The space agency NASA said that in a month the DART space probe will collide for the first time with an asteroid.

Here's What We Know

DART is an acronym for Double Asteroid Redirection Test. On September 27 at 20:14 (EDT) or 17:14 (PDT), it will crash into an asteroid. This will be the first test of Earth's defense against comic objects. The test will assess whether a space probe can collide with asteroids in unmanned mode.

NASA says that the collision will provide the data necessary to prepare for the protection of Earth in the event of an asteroid that would pose a real threat to our planet. Now the probe rotates around the twin asteroids Didymos and Dimorphos and will collide with the second one. The impact is expected to deviate the orbit of Dimorphos by less than 1%, but it will be enough for scientists on Earth to record the deviation using telescopes.

DART went into space in late fall 2021 using a Falcon 9 rocket. In outer space, the probe separated from the rocket and headed toward the asteroid. As part of the mission, scientists want to develop a technique that can be used to alter the trajectory of dangerous to Earth asteroids.

Source: space.com

Image: NASA

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