The scientific community as a whole is both excited and nervous about the NASA DART asteroid crash on September 26. This will be the first time that humanity's defences will be tested.
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Researchers from NASA are observing a Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) in real time so they don't miss a thing. That's why they'll be keeping a close eye on things with both the tried-and-true Hubble Space Telescope and the up-and-coming James Webb Space Telescope.
The European Space Agency (ESA) has created a short animation to help the general public better understand the procedure and execution of the NASA DART mission.
In the post, EAS wrote,"Tomorrow evening, NASA's #DARTmission crashes into #asteroid #Dimorphos ESA's #Estrack network will be tracking the event, our astronomers will be watching the plume created with telescopes on the ground and our #HERAmission is getting ready to fly out and study the results!"
The DART asteroid mission is a test run for Earth's prospective use of planetary defence systems should an asteroid strike. The mission's end goal is to smash a spacecraft into the Dimorphos asteroid and cause its destruction. As a consequence of the collision, the asteroid's trajectory will change, researchers say. The amount of deflection feasible and the speed an item must be travelling to generate that deflection are just two of the many lessons that NASA will take away from this test flight.
Data will be gathered in a variety of ways by NASA. A cubesat on board the spacecraft will capture all of the action. It will deliver pictures three minutes after impact. In 2026, the agency plans to send a spacecraft to investigate the aftermath. A number of terrestrial telescopes will also be broadcasting in real time. NASA, however, need the Hubble and Webb telescopes.
