NASA successfully tested the first-ever planetary defense system - probe-kamikaze DART attacked an asteroid at 22,530 km/h
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has successfully tested a planetary defense system using the space probe Double Asteroid Rendezvous Test (DART).
Here's What We Know
As planned, the spacecraft crashed into the asteroid Dimorphos at 20:14 (EDT) or 17:14 (PDT). It is 11 million km from Earth and orbits the larger asteroid Didymos. The goal of the program is to prove that our planet has a theoretical chance to defend itself from the threat from space.
NASA says that the test was successful and the inhabitants of the Earth can sleep peacefully. The agency also joked that dinosaurs 65 million years ago did not have such a system, unlike mankind. The agency notes that the collision DART with the asteroid was normal, so it did not have to resort to any of the backup plan, which has been developed more than 20.
The space probe hit the asteroid at a speed of 22,530 kilometers per hour. The impact is expected to reduce the orbit of Dimorphus. Prior to the impact, the orbital time around Didympus was 11 hours and 55 minutes. It will be a success for NASA if this time is reduced by 73 seconds, but the agency hopes for a higher result - up to 10 minutes.
IMPACT SUCCESS! Watch from #DARTMIssion's DRACO Camera, as the vending machine-sized spacecraft successfully collides with asteroid Dimorphos, which is the size of a football stadium and poses no threat to Earth. pic.twitter.com/7bXipPkjWD
- NASA (@NASA) September 26, 2022
Since the orbital period is about 12 hours, we will learn about the results of the collision very soon. NASA is expected to share the results of the test by the end of this day. The agency is also expected to publish photos of the space crash taken by the LICIACube cubesat. The images may appear before the end of this week, since the satellite does not have an antenna to transmit data quickly from space to Earth.
Source: space
