April 28, 2024

NASA’s DART Mission To Crash a Spacecraft Into an Asteroid Is Set To Launch – Watch It Live

In fall 2022, DART will impact Dimorphos to change its orbit within the Didymos binary asteroid system.

Complete mission coverage is as follows (all times Eastern):.
Sunday, November 21.
4 p.m.– DART examination and engineering rundown on NASA television with the following individuals:.

Monday, November 22.
7 p.m.– DART prelaunch news conference on NASA TV with the following participants:.

Lori Glaze, director of NASAs Science Mission Directorates Planetary Science Division at NASA Headquarters in Washington.
Tom Statler, DART program scientist, NASAs Science Mission Directorates Planetary Science Division, NASA Headquarters.
Andy Rivkin, DART examination team lead, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory.
Betsy Congdon, DART mechanical systems engineer, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory.
Simone Pirrotta, Light Italian Cubesat for Imaging of Asteroids (LICIACube) task supervisor, Italian Space Agency.

This occasion will stream reside on the companys Facebook, Twitter and YouTube channels. Members of the public can get involved live by submitting concerns in the remark area of the streams, or by utilizing #AskNASA.
Wednesday, November 24.
12:30 a.m.– NASA TV live launch protection starts.
Audio just of the press conference and launch protection will be brought on the NASA “V” circuits, which might be accessed by dialing 321-867-1220, -1240, -1260 or -7135. On launch day, “mission audio,” the launch conductors countdown activities without NASA television launch commentary, will be brought on 321-867-7135.
Planetary Defender Campaign.
To permit the public to share in the excitement of DART, NASA has actually introduced the Planetary Defenders project. Individuals can respond to a short series of concerns about planetary defense to make their planetary protector certificate, which they can print or download, as well as a digital badge to share on social media using the hashtag #PlanetaryDefender.
Public Participation.
Members of the public can sign up to attend the launch virtually. NASAs virtual guest program for DART consists of curated launch resources, a behind-the-scenes take a look at the objective, and the opportunity for a virtual guest launch passport stamp.
Virtual NASA Social.
As we finalize launch preparations, we are excited to invite the general public to join our virtual NASA Social for the #DARTMission on Facebook. Stay up to date on the current mission activities, connect with NASA and DART team members in real-time, and see the launch of the SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket that will improve DART toward its location.

Illustration of NASAs DART spacecraft and the Italian Space Agencys (ASI) LICIACube prior to impact at the Didymos binary system. Credit: NASA/Johns Hopkins, APL/Steve Gribben
NASAs Double Asteroid Redirection Test, or DART, is the worlds very first full-scale planetary defense test, demonstrating one technique of asteroid deflection innovation. True to its name, DART is a concentrated objective, proving that a spacecraft can autonomously navigate to a target asteroid and deliberately hit it (called a kinetic impact) at roughly 4 miles per 2nd (6 kilometers per second). Its target, which positions no risk to Earth, is the asteroid moonlet Dimorphos (Greek for “two kinds”), which orbits a larger asteroid called Didymos (Greek for “twin”).
As part of NASAs larger planetary defense method, DART will at the same time test new innovations and offer important data to boost our modeling and predictive capabilities and assist us much better prepare for an asteroid that may present a threat to Earth, need to one be discovered.
Illustration of the DART spacecraft. Credit: NASA
NASA will offer coverage of the upcoming prelaunch and launch activities for the firms very first planetary defense test objective, the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART). The mission will assist identify if intentionally crashing a spacecraft into an asteroid is an effective method to change its course. DARTs target asteroid is not a threat to Earth.

NASAs Double Asteroid Redirection Test, or DART, is the worlds very first major planetary defense test, showing one method of asteroid deflection innovation. True to its name, DART is a focused mission, showing that a spacecraft can autonomously navigate to a target asteroid and deliberately clash with it (called a kinetic effect) at roughly 4 miles per second (6 kilometers per second). NASA will supply coverage of the upcoming prelaunch and launch activities for the companys first planetary defense test objective, the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART). DARTs target asteroid is not a danger to Earth.

Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator, NASAs Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters.
Lindley Johnson, planetary defense officer, NASAs Planetary Defense Coordination Office, NASA Headquarters.
Ed Reynolds, DART task manager, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory.
Omar Baez, senior launch director, Launch Services Program, NASAs Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
Julianna Scheiman, director for civil satellite objectives, SpaceX.
Capt. Maximillian Rush, weather officer, Space Launch Delta 30, Vandenberg Space Force Base.

DART is scheduled to release no earlier than 1:20 a.m. EST Wednesday, November 24 (10:20 p.m. PST Tuesday, November 23) on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.
Live launch protection on NASA Television will start at 12:30 a.m. EST Wednesday, November 24, 2021 (9:30 p.m. PST Tuesday, November 23, 2021), on NASA Television, the NASA app, and the companys site, with prelaunch and science rundowns starting Sunday, November 21.
The spacecraft is developed to direct itself to impact an asteroid while taking a trip at a speed of approximately 15,000 miles per hour (24,000 kilometers per hour). Its target is the asteroid moonlet Dimorphos (Greek for “two types”), which orbits a bigger asteroid named Didymos (Greek for “twin”). In fall 2022, DART will impact Dimorphos to change its orbit within the Didymos binary asteroid system. The Didymos system is the perfect candidate for DART because it postures no actual impact threat to Earth, and scientists can determine the change in Dimorphos orbit with ground-based telescopes.

Tuesday, November 23.
4 p.m.– NASA Science Live, with the following participants:.

Nancy Chabot, DART coordination lead, John Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.
Joshua Ramirez Rodriguez, telecommunications subsystem combination and test lead engineer, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory.

Lori Glaze, director of NASAs Science Mission Directorates Planetary Science Division at NASA Headquarters.