(State Dept./D. Thompson)
It sounds like the plot of a Hollywood blockbuster, but it’s real. NASA scientists will soon launch a mission to change the course of a distant asteroid in a test of technology that could one day save planet Earth from disaster.
The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spaceship could launch as early as July. It will travel 11 million kilometers and slam into the smaller part of the Didymos binary asteroid system, knocking the moonlet slightly off its current path. The asteroid punch is planned for September 2022.
Shortly before impact, a shoebox-sized satellite built by NASA partners in Italy will break away from the rocket to help scientists study the asteroid’s trajectory after the collision and determine if the mission is a success.