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Science & Tech.
Pradeep Kumar

07/10/21 11:05 AM IST

Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) Mission

In news

The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission is directed by NASA to the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) with support from several NASA centers.

Details
  • After launching in November, NASA will test its asteroid deflection technology in September 2022 to see how it impacts the motion of a near-Earth asteroid in space.
  • The target of this asteroid deflection technology is Dimorphos, a small moon orbiting the near-Earth asteroid Didymos.
  • This will be the agency's first full-scale demonstration of this type of technology on behalf of planetary defense.
  • Near-Earth objects are asteroids and comets whose orbits place them within 30 million miles of Earth.
  • Detecting the threat of near-Earth objects, or NEOs, that could potentially cause grave harm is a primary focus of NASA and other space organizations around the world.
About the mission
  • Dimorphos was chosen for this mission because its size is relative to asteroids that could pose a threat to Earth.
  • DART will crash into Dimorphos moving at 14,763.8 miles per hour. A camera on DART, called DRACO, and autonomous navigation software will help the spacecraft detect and collide with Dimorphos.
  • This fast impact will only change Dimorphos' speed as it orbits Didymos by 1%, which doesn't sound like a lot -- but it will change the moon's orbital period by several minutes. That change can be observed and measured from ground-based telescopes on Earth.
  • It will also be the first time humans have altered the dynamics of a solar system body in a measurable way.
Source: NASa.gov

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