Is newmedman an earthllng? - NASA's surprising reason for crashing into an asteroid's moon
And why the mission was dubbed "Double" Asteroid Redirection Test.
By Elisha Sauers on October 1, 2022
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Planetary scientists have more work to do on the DART experiment. A follow-up European mission, Hera, will launch in late 2024 and rendezvous with Dimorphos to perform its own crash scene investigation. It will measure the asteroid's mass and take a close look at the crater. The data should tie up the loose ends of the experiment, perhaps making DART a repeatable planetary defense technique in the future for a real threat.
So far the team is calling the DART mission a success. The exercise should instill confidence in humanity's ability to spot potential problem space rocks and intervene long before they come anywhere close to this planet, said Elena Adams, a mission systems engineer.
"Earthlings should sleep better," she said. "Definitely, I will."