The goal has been achieved! The US Space Agency won Deflect an asteroid from its path By sending a spacecraft against its surface in late September during an unprecedented test mission, it allowed humanity to learn how to protect itself from future threats, NASA announced Tuesday.
The Dart mission spacecraft intentionally crashed into its target, the asteroid Dimorphos, a satellite of the larger asteroid Didymos. A NASA device It was able to moveIt will shorten its orbit by 32 minutes, space agency chief Bill Nelson told a news conference.
Video. DART Mission: Incredible Images of Spacecraft Crashing on an Asteroid
At the end of September, the craft, which was smaller than a car, blacked out towards its destination at 20,000 km/h, arriving on schedule (23:14 GMT). NASA crews gathered at the Mission Control Center in Maryland, USA, erupted in joy at the moment of impact. A few minutes ago, the asteroid Dimorphos, located about 11 million kilometers from Earth, grew progressively larger in spectacular images broadcast live on board. Before the images stop at the moment of explosion, we can clearly distinguish pebbles on its gray surface.