DART spacecraft to kick an asteroid off course | World News - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

DART spacecraft to kick an asteroid off course

Agencies | By
Nov 25, 2021 03:25 AM IST

The DART payload, about the size of a vending machine, was released from the booster a few minutes after launch to begin a 10-month journey into space, some 11 million km from Earth.

A spacecraft that must ultimately crash to succeed was launched late on Tuesday from California on a Nasa mission to demonstrate the world’s first planetary defence system, designed to deflect an asteroid from a potential doomsday collision with Earth.

The DART Spacecraft takes off onboard a SpaceX rocket from California. AFP
The DART Spacecraft takes off onboard a SpaceX rocket from California. AFP

The DART spacecraft soared into the night sky at 10:21pm Pacific time on Tuesday from Vandenberg US Space Force Base, carried aboard a SpaceX-owned Falcon 9 rocket.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

The DART payload, about the size of a vending machine, was released from the booster a few minutes after launch to begin a 10-month journey into space, some 11 million km from Earth.

DART will fly under the guidance of NASA’s flight directors until the last hours of its odyssey, when control will be handed over to an autonomous onboard navigation system.

The mission’s finale will test spacecraft’s ability to alter an asteroid’s trajectory with sheer kinetic force, plowing into it at high speed to nudge the space boulder off course just enough to keep our planet out of harm’s way.

Cameras mounted on the impactor and on a briefcase-sized mini-spacecraft to be released from DART about 10 days beforehand will record the collision and beam images of it back to Earth.

The asteroid that DART is aiming for poses no actual threat and is tiny compared with the cataclysmic Chicxulub asteroid that struck Earth some 66 million years ago, leading to extinction of the dinosaurs.

Pentagon to form new group to probe UFOs

The US department of defence late on Tuesday said it will establish a new group, called the Airborne Object Identification and Management Synchronization Group, to probe reports on the presence of UFOs in restricted airspace. This comes after the government released a report in June, encompassing 144 observations, which said there was a lack of sufficient data to determine the nature of mysterious flying objects.

Unlock a world of Benefits with HT! From insightful newsletters to real-time news alerts and a personalized news feed – it's all here, just a click away! - Login Now!

Get Latest World News along with Latest News from India at Hindustan Times.
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Thursday, March 28, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On