NASA's DART Mission Permanently Alters Asteroid Orbit, Proving Planetary Defense Feasible
Summary
NASA's DART mission has successfully altered the orbit of asteroids Dimorphos and Didymos, demonstrating the feasibility of deflecting hazardous asteroids to protect Earth.
Key Points
- NASA's DART mission permanently changed the solar orbit of asteroids Dimorphos and Didymos after a collision in 2022.
- The collision shortened the asteroids' orbital period around the Sun by nearly one second over 770 days.
- Debris ejected from the collision contributed more to momentum change than the spacecraft impact itself.
- The European Space Agency's Hera mission will further study Dimorphos and NASA plans another mission to detect hazardous asteroids near Earth.
