Space Rock has changed course

NASA’s test to change course with a space rock has passed. The space agency has announced. It is the first time that humanity changes the motion of a celestial body, says NASA.

NASA sent the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) space probe at a speed of about 20,000 kilometers per hour to collide with Dimorphos, a 160-meter-wide asteroid. The collision was a test to see if such a maneuver could change the orbit of an asteroid threatening to hit Earth.

“This is a turning point for planetary defense and a turning point for humanity,” said NASA chief Bill Nelson.

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Dimorphos, which revolves around its older sister Didymos with a diameter of 750 meters, was not on a collision course with Earth. Furthermore, there was no danger that the collision with DART could push Dimorphos towards Earth.

Due to the collision, Dimorphos’ orbit appears to have been reduced by 32 minutes. According to NASA, this shows that such a mission is a viable way to one day deflect a space rock that is on a collision course with Earth.

Scientists predicted that the impact of the DART would reduce Dimorphos’ orbital path by at least 10 minutes. They also said they would consider a change of just 73 seconds a success.

The mission cost about $ 330 million in total. The DART was launched in November 2021 launched.

Last week a photo showed that the rock was expanding, tail similar to a comet had received more than 10,000 kilometers, consisting of dust and other material. The photo was taken two days after the accident.