NASA successfully crashes spacecraft into asteroid

In the first ever planetary defense mission, NASA crashed a spaceship into an asteroid.

NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test ( DART ) spacecraft slammed into the harmless 530-feet-wide Dimorphos asteroid as part of a bold test mission deploy technology that could one day be used to tackle a hazardous object headed for Earth.

At 7:14 p.m., the impact took place. 4:30 a.m.) The picture was taken by a camera attached to the spacecraft. The audience has been happy to see a live feed.

IMPACT SUCCESS! Watch from #DARTMIssion’s DRACO Camera, as the vending machine-sized spacecraft successfully collides with asteroid Dimorphos, which is the size of a football stadium and poses no threat to Earth. pic.twitter.com/7bXipPkjWD

— NASA (@NASA) September 26, 2022

Astronomers will use their telescopes to measure Dimorphos' trajectory and see if the asteroid has been changed. If it did, the mission would have been a major step forward in planetary defense, giving humans a chance to avoid the fate of the dinosaurs if an asteroid is ever spotted.

Just seconds after the impact, a NASA commentator said, "We're embarking on a new era of humankind." We have never had the ability to protect ourselves from something like a dangerous hazardous asteroid impact, but that could change.

The Light Italian CubeSat was ejected last week. This will have flown past Dimorphos about three minutes after the impact, taking high-resolution images of the crash site, as well as the asteroid material thrown up by the collision. As soon as possible, we will share these images.

The story is evolving. There is more to come.

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