NASA’s DART Spacecraft Changed An Asteroid’s Orbit Around The Sun
DOGO News • • science
Key Points:
- NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission successfully demonstrated that a spacecraft can alter the path of an asteroid by intentionally crashing into the small asteroid Dimorphos in September 2022.
- The impact shortened Dimorphos’ orbit around its larger companion Didymos by about 32 minutes, partly due to the collision and partly due to the ejection of rock and dust.
- Recent analysis published in Science Advances revealed that the impact also caused a slight shift in the binary system’s orbit around the Sun, measuring about 1.7 inches (4.3 cm) per hour.
- This marks the first time scientists have measured a real change in an asteroid’s orbit around the Sun, confirming that humans have the capability to push asteroids and potentially protect Earth from hazardous objects.
