NaSA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) probe successfully collided with asteroid Dimorphus on September 27. Images of the collision captured by Itila’s Lysiacube probe were released earlier. Now, NASA has released the footage of the Dart collision captured by the James Webb Space Telescope.
The collision between Dart and Dimorphus was the first time that the James Webb Telescope and the Hubble Telescope had both looked at the same object in the same direction in space.
The Dart project aimed to test whether it is possible to change the trajectory of dangerous asteroids aimed at the Earth by crashing the spacecraft. The crew was able to successfully complete the mission up to the collision as planned. But whether the asteroid was displaced as a result of the collision is yet to be verified.
NASA has used various space-based and ground-based telescopes, including the James Webb Space Telescope and the Hubble Space Telescope, to collect data for it.
Webb and Hubble captured images of dimorphism from different wavelengths of light. These collected data can be used to study changes in dimorphism as a result of collisions. The Webb Telescope captured several images of before and after the collision. More studies will be conducted on this information in the coming months.
Prone to fits of apathy. Unable to type with boxing gloves on. Internet advocate. Avid travel enthusiast. Entrepreneur. Music expert.
