The threat of an asteroid hitting Earth and causing chaos close to what we imagine as the end of the world has been something typical of science fiction movies. However, something like this will happen soon in real life.
NASA will put into practice the planetary defense technique to change the direction of an asteroid that will impact Earth. Although it does not pose a real danger, the target is ideal for testing the effectiveness of the mission.
The mission
The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission is led by NASA in conjunction with the research centers of several American universities.
DART is a test of planetary defense technologies to prevent a dangerous asteroid from impacting Earth. Is It will be the first demonstration of the technique to change the motion of an asteroid in space.
The objective
The Didymos binary asteroid system is the target of the DART demonstration. While Didymos’s primary body is about 780 meters in diameter, its secondary body (or moon) is about 160 meters in size, which is more typical of asteroids that could pose a significant threat to Earth more likely.
Telescopes are being used to accurately measure Didymos and understand its properties before DART arrives.
The expected result
The DART spacecraft will achieve kinetic impact deflection by deliberately crashing into the moon Didymos at a speed of approximately 6.6 km/s, with the help of an onboard camera and sophisticated autonomous navigation software.
The collision will change the speed of the Moon in its orbit around the main body by a fraction of 1%, but this will change the orbital period of the Moon by several minutes, enough to be observed and measured with telescopes on Earth.
whatWhen will it happen?
Launch of the DART spacecraft begins in late July 2021. DART will launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Air Force Base, California.
After separation from the launch vehicle and more than a year of cruise, it will intercept the Didymos moon in late September 2022, when the system is 11 million kilometers from Earth, allowing observations by telescopes. terrestrial and planetary radars to measure the change in momentum imparted to the moon.
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