Purdue Expert: NASA's DART Mission

Media is welcome to use this video for TV, radio or podcasts or pull quotes for print articles. Michelle Thompson is an assistant professor in the Department of Earth, Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences at Purdue University. In this video, she explains how NASA plans to test redirecting objects away from Earth by crashing a spacecraft into an asteroid. Thompson says that NASA’s double asteroid redirection test, or DART, is a mission focused on planetary defense. NASA has launched a spacecraft to impact the surface of an asteroid to determine if this could move objects off a collision course with Earth. Thompson says this test is important because scientists aren't able to track every object in the sky that may enter near-Earth space. She says being prepared with a solution will enable the world to better protect itself in the event of a potential collision. Thompson notes that there is no risk that the asteroid being hit during the DART mission will enter into a collision course with Earth. She says this test is a safe and highly rewarding mission that will better prepare the world for problematic asteroid events. The test will occur Sept. 26 at 7:14 p.m. EDT with NASA live streaming and providing coverage. #purdue #purdueuniversity #purduenews