{"id":25725,"date":"2022-09-27T13:59:42","date_gmt":"2022-09-27T12:59:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/?p=25725"},"modified":"2022-09-27T13:59:42","modified_gmt":"2022-09-27T12:59:42","slug":"nasas-dart-mission-the-importance-of-planetary-defence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.innovationnewsnetwork.com\/nasas-dart-mission-the-importance-of-planetary-defence\/25725\/","title":{"rendered":"NASA\u2019s DART mission: The importance of planetary defence"},"content":{"rendered":"
NASA\u2019s <\/span>Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART)<\/span><\/a> has successfully impacted its asteroid target after ten months of flying in space. At 7:14 p.m. EDT on Monday, mission control at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory (APL) in Laurel, Maryland, announced the successful impact. DART, the world\u2019s first planetary defence technology demonstration, smashed its target in the <\/span>agency\u2019s first attempt<\/span><\/a> to move an asteroid in space.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n DART\u2019s impact with the asteroid Dimorphos, part of NASA\u2019s planetary defence strategy, demonstrates a viable mitigation technique for protecting the planet from an Earth-bound comet or asteroid, if one were discovered.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n NASA Administrator Bill Nelson stated: \u201cAt its core, DART represents an unprecedented success for planetary defence, but it is also a mission of unity with a real benefit for all humanity.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAs NASA studies the cosmos and our home planet, we\u2019re also working to protect that home, and this international collaboration turned science fiction into science fact, demonstrating one way to protect Earth.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Dimorphos, a small body just 160 metres in diameter, was targeted by the DART mission. The asteroid orbits a larger, 780-metre asteroid called Didymos. Neither Dimorphos nor Didymos pose a threat to Earth.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The mission has shown that NASA can successfully navigate a spacecraft to intentionally collide with an asteroid to deflect it, a technique known as kinetic impact.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Now, Dimorphos will be observed by the investigation team to confirm that DART\u2019s impact altered its orbit around Didymos. It is estimated that the impact should shorten Dimorphos\u2019 orbit by about 1%, or roughly ten minutes. The team will use ground-based telescopes, ensuring that the deflection of the asteroid is precisely measured; one of the primary purposes of the full-scale test.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Nearby asteroids and comets pose a very real threat to Earth. Serious damage on a local scale can be caused by an impact of any size, and bigger near-Earth objects (NEOs) have the potential to cause large-scale destruction. If humans do not take the necessary steps to prevent major impacts, they are bound to occur.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n NASA\u2019s DART mission aims to demonstrate a potential technology for deflecting an asteroid off a predicted impact course with Earth. The recent breakthrough that occurred on Monday has revealed a viable solution to avoid an asteroid or comet impacting our planet.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator for the Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington, stated: \u201cPlanetary Defence is a globally unifying effort that affects everyone living on Earth.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cNow we know we can aim a spacecraft with the precision needed to impact even a small body in space. Just a small change in its speed is all we need to make a significant difference in the path an asteroid travels.\u201d\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\nThe significance of DART\u2019s impact with an asteroid \u00a0<\/span><\/h3>\n
Why is planetary defence so important?<\/h3>\n