Why DART Is the Most Important Mission

Ever Launched to Space

Humanity’s accomplishments in space are worth celebrating, but today’s DART test to de�ect a
non-threatening asteroid carries existential implications.

By George DvorskyPublished September 26, 2022 Comments (6)

Artist’s depiction of a double asteroid system passing by Earth. Image: ESA-P.Carril

Later today, NASA’s DART spacecraft will attempt to smash into a non-threatening
asteroid. It’s one of the most important things we’ve done in space—if not the most
important thing—as this experiment to deflect a non-threatening asteroid could
 eventually result in a robust and effective planetary defense strategy for protecting
life on Earth.

Watch
Astronomers Could Soon Get Warnings When SpaceX Satellites Threaten Their View

China's Plan to Land Astronauts on the Moon

January 10, 2023

Better Mobility & Cameras: NASA & Axiom's New Spacesuits | Techmodo
March 23, 2023

We’ve landed humans on the Moon, transported rovers to Mars, and sent spacecraft
to interstellar space, yet nothing compares to what might happen today when
NASA’s DART spacecraft smashes into Dimorphos, the smaller member of the
Didymos binary asteroid system. Should all go according to plan, DART will smash
directly into the 525-foot-wide (160-meter) asteroid at 7:14 p.m. ET (watch it live
here) and change the rock’s speed by around 1%. That’s a small orbital adjustment
for an asteroid, but a giant leap for humankind.

Related Content
 NASA's DART Asteroid-Smashing Mission Changed the Course of
Planetary Defense

What to Expect from NASA’s DART Mission to Deflect an Asteroid

A DV E RT I S E M E NT

NASA’s DART mission, short for Double Asteroid Redirection Test, won’t mean that
we suddenly have a defense against threatening asteroids, but it could demonstrate a
viable strategy for steering dangerous asteroids away from Earth. It’ll be many more
years before our competency in this area fully matures, but it all starts today with
DART.

A DV E RT I S E M E NT