A NASA spacecraft rammed an asteroid at blistering speed yesterday in an unprecedented dress rehearsal for the day a killer rock menaces Earth. Sounds like a familiar move? But... It is not!
The galactic slam occurred at a harmless asteroid 7 million miles away, with the spacecraft named Dart plowing into the space rock at 14,000 mph. Scientists expected the impact to carve out a crater, hurl streams of rocks and dirt into space and, most importantly, alter the asteroid’s orbit.
“There was indeed impact!” Mission Control’s Elena Adams announced.
Telescopes around the world and in space were aimed at the same point in the sky to capture the spectacle. Though the impact was immediately obvious — Dart’s radio signal abruptly ceased — it will take as long as a couple of months to determine how much the asteroid’s path was changed.
As far as they could tell, the first planetary defense test was a success
This historic dress rehearsal of a possible disasterous impact with Earth, now gives hope of a someday defense in the future.
Many Earthlings are sleeping better tonight!
Nana
Comments