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NASA attempts to redirect asteroid with DART mission

While Artemis is remaining on the ground for now, NASA is launching another spacecraft at an asteroid.

PENNSYLVANIA, USA — It's called DART, and it stands for Double Asteroid Redirection Test. 

NASA will shoot a spacecraft at an asteroid, currently seven million miles away, to see if it can be redirected.

"We're taking a spacecraft, and we're going to impact it into the asteroid Dimorphos, and we're going to try to change its orbit, testing the kinetic impactor method for planetary defense," said Dawn Graninger, Astrophysicist.

The asteroid doesn't pose a threat to Earth. The goal is to test the technology if NASA detects trouble, big trouble, heading this way.

"Kinetic impactor is just one of the techniques that can be used for planetary mitigation," said Graninger.

To make the collision happen, a smaller probe will be jettisoned from the larger spacecraft, ramming into the asteroid at a speed of more than 14,000 miles an hour.

"By testing this out for dart, we are basically verifying that we know what we are doing so that in the event something is coming at impact trajectory toward Earth, we can save the day," said Graninger.

NASA has used some of this technology before, but much of it is up for its first test. 

Planning for this project started decades ago. The actual spacecraft that will be used in the impact blasted into space in November.

A special and new observatory in South America will determine if NASA hit its target and if we can sleep a little easier.

Check out WNEP's YouTube channel. 

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