NASA’s Deep Space Network has just confirmed that a spacecraft has crashed into an asteroid. The crash was first detected by the network on Sunday night, and it is still being investigated. So far, there is no information about what caused the spacecraft to crash into the asteroid. However, NASA officials say that they are confident that they will be able to recover any data or evidence that was on board the spacecraft. This is the first time that NASA has ever crashed a spacecraft into an asteroid. However, it is not the first time that they have attempted to do so. In 2013, NASA attempted to fly a spacecraft past an asteroid called Bennu, but the mission failed due to technical issues. This latest crash could have important implications for space exploration. It could help us learn more about how asteroids work and how we can potentially use them as stepping stones for future missions to Mars or even beyond. ..

NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test, or DART for short, reached its most exciting stage yesterday. The test had the aim of intercepting an asteroid called Dimorphos. The spacecraft launched by NASA was quickly zipping at 14,000 mph, until it finally struck, and redirected, the asteroid on September 26th at 7:14 PM ET.

— NASA (@NASA) September 26, 2022

The asteroid itself wasn’t threatening Earth at all. It was actually a small asteroid that was orbiting a bigger one, Didymos, as a satellite, and while both were close to Earth, they weren’t currently heading over to destroy our planet from an impact. So why did NASA strike it? Basically, just to see if we would be able to successfully avert armageddon if we actually need to knock out something that’s coming towards us in the future.

A catastrophic asteroid strike hasn’t happened in modern history, and we don’t know of any asteroid currently heading to Earth, but it’s good to know that if, and when, it does happen, we have the capabilities to intercept it and do something about it. Now comes the more important part: was it successful? The asteroid was stricken, but we remain to know if that impact did something significant. Scientists are expecting the asteroid to change its orbit and move faster — we remain to see if the actual change matches the computer models.

Exciting times for mankind, indeed — we might be able to successfully save the world if an asteroid threatens it.

Source: The Verge