{"id":17455,"date":"2021-11-23T22:43:04","date_gmt":"2021-11-23T14:43:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/nasa-begins-dart-mission-to-practice-pushing-away-an-asteroid-with-an-extra-push-from-aerojet\/"},"modified":"2021-11-23T22:43:04","modified_gmt":"2021-11-23T14:43:04","slug":"nasa-begins-dart-mission-to-practice-pushing-away-an-asteroid-with-an-extra-push-from-aerojet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/nasa-begins-dart-mission-to-practice-pushing-away-an-asteroid-with-an-extra-push-from-aerojet\/","title":{"rendered":"NASA begins DART mission to practice pushing away an asteroid, with an extra push from Aerojet"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"SpaceX
SpaceX\u2019s Falcon 9 rocket launches NASA\u2019s DART asteroid probe from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. (NASA via YouTube)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A space probe the size of a school bus is on its way to smash into an asteroid the size of Egypt\u2019s Great Pyramid, directed by thruster systems built by Aerojet Rocketdyne in Redmond, Wash.<\/p>\n

This is no \u201cArmageddon,\u201d and there\u2019s no need for Bruce Willis to ride to the rescue. But the experiment is expected to help scientists figure out how to divert a dangerous asteroid heading for Earth should the need arise. That\u2019s one giant leap for planetary defense \u2014 and for Aerojet Rocketdyne, whose made-in-Redmond thrusters have been used on dozens of space missions.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been to every planet in the solar system,\u201d said Joseph Cassady, Aerojet\u2019s executive director for space. \u201cBut this is the first time we\u2019ve ever done something that\u2019s really truly planned as a defense against threats to life on Earth. The test we\u2019re going to do here is really the first step in getting ourselves ready as a species to react and respond if we ever are threatened in that way.\u201d<\/p>\n

NASA\u2019s Double Asteroid Redirection Test mission, or DART, got off to a showy start with tonight\u2019s launch of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California. Liftoff occurred at 10:21 p.m. PT, at the end of a smooth countdown.<\/p>\n

Minutes after launch, the rocket\u2019s second stage separated from the first-stage booster and proceeded to orbit, while the booster flew itself back to an at-sea landing on a drone ship stationed in the Pacific. Within an hour after launch, the second stage deployed the DART spacecraft and sent it on its way.<\/p>\n

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