Asteroid-smashing spacecraft DID change path of space rock in mission to ‘save Earth’, Nasa confirms

NASA'S first-ever planetary defense test has been deemed a success.

On September 26, Nasa carried out the final phase of its DART, or Double Asteroid Redirection Test, mission.

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The mission comprised smashing a spacecraft into an asteroid dubbed Dimorphos to change its trajectory.

Now, Nasa has finally revealed that the collision between its uncrewed craft and Dimorphos was a success.

The asteroid's trajectory has shifted to now orbit a larger asteroid called Didymos.

"This is a watershed moment for planetary defense and a watershed moment for humanity," Nasa Administrator Bill Nelson said Tuesday at a press briefing.

Nelson added that the mission "shows NASA is trying to be ready for whatever the universe throws at us."

Nasa's spacecraft was moving more than 14,000 miles per hour when it smashed into Dimorphos.

At that point, the space rock was about 7million miles from Earth and did not pose a threat to our planet.

"The impact was perfectly executed," said Megan Bruck Syal, the planetary defense project lead at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California.

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The Mission

Nasa's DART mission was first set in motion on November 23, 2021.

The spacecraft launched from Vandenberg Space Force Base in Santa Barbara County, California.

The impact between the craft and the space rock was recorded at exactly 7:14 pm EST on September 26, 2022.

Nasa's experiment is hoping to solidify a method for protecting Earth from future asteroids.

As of right now, Nasa says there are no asteroids larger than 140 meters in diameter known to be on a collision course with Earth for the next 100 years.

Alan Fitzsimmons, a DART team member and astronomy professor at Queen’s University Belfast, said he would like to test a gravity tractor technique next,

Fitzsimmons said this is important "because it’s actually very difficult to accurately guide and maneuver spacecraft in very close proximity to an asteroid."