Double Asteroid Redirection Test

The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) was a space probe designed to first study the small asteroid Didymos, and its even smaller moon, Dimorphis, and then collide with Dimorphis.^[1]

Studying the ollision was intended to test the feasibility of changing the orbit of asteroids, through controlled collisions.^[1]

References

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 "Didymos & Dimorphos". NASA Science. 2020-06-18. Archived from the original on 2026-07-01. Retrieved 2026-07-07. The two asteroids are not a threat to Earth, but because they do pass relatively close to Earth, they were chosen as the target for NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission – the agency's first mission to test planetary defense technology. This technology could one day be used to deflect hazardous asteroids on a collision course with Earth.

[NasaDidymos2020-06-18-1] 1.0 ^1.1 "Didymos & Dimorphos". NASA Science. 2020-06-18. Archived from the original on 2026-07-01. Retrieved 2026-07-07. The two asteroids are not a threat to Earth, but because they do pass relatively close to Earth, they were chosen as the target for NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission – the agency's first mission to test planetary defense technology. This technology could one day be used to deflect hazardous asteroids on a collision course with Earth.

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