Question: Towards which of the following asteroid, NASA is going to launch asteroid-killing Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spacecraft?
a) Didymos
b) Bennu
c) Apophis
d) None of these
Answer: (a)
Related Facts:-
- On November 24, 2021; American Space Agency, NASA is going to launch asteroid-killing Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) spacecraft.
- SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket will be used for the launch of DART spacecraft.
- Vandenberg Space Force Base in the California will be used by NASA for the launch.
- NASA has planned to protect the Earth from hazardous asteroid collision and therefore building build advanced technologies for this purpose through such missions.
- NASA is planning for this spacecraft because astronomers and scientists have warned about dangerous impact of asteroids.
- They are of the opinion that asteroids might cause most damage to the Earth if proper defence system is not developed against them.
- Today we know that an asteroid collision caused the extinction of dinosaurs from planet 66 million years ago.
- Targets:-
- Under the mission, spacecraft will be sent towards Didymos asteroid system, approximately 109.4 crore kilometres away from Earth.
- Didymos system comprise of two asteroids namely, Didymos and Dimorphos.
- How it will work
- The DART mission is based on the idea of developing a defence system against asteroid collision.
- The spacecraft will ram into Dimorphos in order to determine if kinetic impactor technology can be a reliable method to deflect asteroids.
- Kinetic impactor technology requires flying the spacecraft directly into a small Solar System body.
Links:-
https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-invites-media-to-launch-of-double-asteroid-redirection-test