The moon of an asteroid has been physically changed in addition to being moved by NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission in 2022.
According to a research, NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission in 2022 not only physically reshaped the asteroid moon Dimorphos, but also forced it off of its original orbit.
In an attempt to determine whether any celestial object might be forced off its path, NASA intentionally crashed its DART spacecraft into the tiny asteroid moon Dimorphos, which circles the asteroid Didymos, two years ago. All of this was related to NASA’s emphasis on planetary defense.
Although the initial goal was only to observe a slight shift in orientation, recent research that was published in the Planetary Science Journal shows that the slight push caused this moon to go on an incredible new journey.
Dr. Derek Richardson, one of the mission’s experts, stated in the report that the collision caused the asteroid moon, which had initially had a hamburger-like form, to change to more of a football-like shape.
This has fundamentally contradicted what scientists previously understood about the formation of asteroid moons. It was previously thought as asteroids’ moons aged, they would lengthen and orient their primary axis in the direction of the asteroid they orbit.
These fresh data, however, point to the asteroid moon contracting and squishing instead.
This outcome disproves that theory and suggests a more intricate process is at play. Additionally, Richardson stated in a university news release that “the impact-induced change in Dimorphos’ shape likely changed how it interacts with Didymos.”
The DART mission has other consequences besides this one. It has been reported that the asteroid moon has been “tumbling” across space since it was forced off its orbit. It has not shown a single constant face to its asteroid and has been revolving erratically.
These discoveries aid scientists in planning how to handle comets or asteroids should they collide with Earth.
According to Richardson, “all of this research helps us calibrate our efforts to defend Earth in the event of an actual threat.” DART provided insight into complex gravitational physics that is impossible to conduct in a lab.
There is a nonzero risk that an approaching asteroid or comet may put the Earth in jeopardy, he continued. We now have an extra layer of protection against these types of outside attacks.
