Space

NASA Spots 37 Space Boulders From Deflected Asteroid

JUL 21 2023·Updated AUG 27

#Space

NASA Spots 37 Space Boulders From Deflected Asteroid

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Image credit: NASA [via Wikimedia Commons]

The Facts

NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has detected a cluster of 37 boulders that were ejected from the asteroid Dimorphos, which the agency’s DART ["Double Asteroid Redirection Test"] mission successfully targeted and hit in the world’s first planetary defense test mission against a celestial object.
The Register
On Sept. 26, 2002, the 1.2K (544 kg) pound spacecraft crashed directly into Dimorphos at 13K mph (21 km/hr) in an attempt to change the asteroid’s velocity and movement. The mission also helped to determine how kinetic impact technology can be used to deflect asteroids that could potentially hit the Earth.
CNN
After the DART successfully impacted Dimorphos and reduced the length of its orbit by 33 minutes, David Jewitt and his colleagues at the Univ. of California, Los Angeles in December used the Hubble to study the debris, finding 37 boulders, which range from 1 to nearly 7 meters (3-23 ft) across.
New Scientist
Jewitt said the "spectacular observation" was much better than expected, adding that his team could "see a cloud of boulders carrying mass and energy away from the impact target." For the first time, scientists could see what happens when they strike an asteroid and the material it ejects up to the largest sizes.
The Indian Express
NASA says the rocks are drifting away from Dimorphos at roughly 0.5 mph (.8 km/hr), or around the walking speed of a giant tortoise. The rocks’ combined mass is about 0.1% that of the asteroid. The boulders are likely not shattered fragments of Dimorphos itself but were rather already scattered on its surface.
NASA
While neither Dimorphos nor the asteroid it orbits, Didymos, poses a threat to Earth, scientists will use the findings to prevent a potential asteroid collision. In 2024, the European Space Agency will launch its Hera mission to study both asteroids and measure their physical properties.
CNN

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The Spin

Narrative A

NASA’s groundbreaking work not only provides fascinating insight into the larger universe around us, but it could also save our very existence by developing a defense against potential asteroids headed toward Earth. There are many dangers beyond our planet that threaten our safety and could end life as we know it. Thankfully, NASA’s DART mission is discovering information and developing a plan that could save our planet one day.

Vox

Narrative B

NASA's DART mission could very well be vital in protecting the Earth from a catastrophic collision. However, the scientific community must be very careful with how it gathers and uses this otherworldly information as there could be unimaginable consequences. This technology also brings the possibility of deflecting asteroids into Earth's path on purpose by a bad actor as a weapon of mass destruction. Proper precautions must be taken with these celestial developments.