For the first time, a NASA probe has deliberately smashed into an asteroid, intending to knock it off course. The unmanned probe of the Dart mission (“Double Asteroid Redirection Test”), which was equipped with a camera, struck the asteroid Dimorphos on Tuesday as planned.
Dimorphos, a kind of moon of the asteroid Didymos with a diameter of 160 meters, posed no real danger to Earth, according to NASA. This mission, which should slightly change the orbit of the asteroid, will not change that, according to the American space agency.
However, with the mission, which cost about $330 million, NASA hopes to gain insight into ways to protect Earth from asteroids heading its way.
Dart was launched in November 2021 and struck at 1.14 am Belgian time at Dimorphos, more than ten million kilometres away. The impact speed was more than 20,000 kilometres per hour.
The Italian cubesat LICIACubesat travelled with Dart. This shoebox-sized nanosatellite has two optical cameras. The cubesat, previously disconnected from the mothership, followed the unprecedented spectacle from the front row. However, the effect of the impact will not be known immediately, it was said earlier.
