NASA DART impact sped Dimorphos orbit by 33 minutes
Technology
NASA just pulled off something straight out of a sci-fi movie: its DART spacecraft slammed into Dimorphos, a small moonlet orbiting the asteroid Didymos, which has a diameter of about 150 meters, or 492 feet, to see if we could change its path.
The impact, which happened 11 million kilometers from Earth, sped up Dimorphos's orbit by 33 minutes, way more than scientists hoped for.
Impact study informs asteroid defense
This isn't just cool space news: it's proof we might be able to protect Earth from dangerous asteroids in the future.
By studying how Dimorphos reacted, scientists learned a ton about asteroid behavior and stressed that spotting threats early is key.
DART's success is a big step toward keeping our planet safe from cosmic surprises.