Planetary Defense
The DART mission is part of our Planetary Defense program, which aims to protect Earth from the threat of asteroid impacts.
Asteroid Impact Mitigation
The DART mission is focused on testing a technique for deflecting asteroids that might pose a threat to Earth.
Target
The DART mission is targeting a binary asteroid system called Didymos, which consists of a larger asteroid and a smaller asteroid.
Mission Details
The DART spacecraft is travel over 6 million miles to reach the Didymos asteroid system.
About Us
The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission is a project aimed at testing the effectiveness of a kinetic impactor technique to deflect an asteroid. The mission targets a binary asteroid system called Didymos, where the DART spacecraft is designed to impact the smaller moonlet at high speed.
DART: Double Asteroid Redirection Test
The DART spacecraft will collide with the smaller asteroid at a speed of approximately 15,000 miles per hour, with the goal of altering its orbit by a small amount. The impact will be observed from Earth-based telescopes and will provide valuable information about the effectiveness of the deflection technique. this mission could pave the way for future missions that could protect Earth from potential asteroid impacts.
The primary objective of the DART mission is to test a technique for asteroid deflection that could be used to protect Earth from potential asteroid impacts.
Asteroid Deflection
The primary objective of the DART mission is to test a new technique for asteroid deflection that could be used to protect Earth from potential asteroid impacts.
Scientific Data Gathering
Another key objective of the DART mission is to gather scientific data about the asteroid in the Didymos system.
Planetary Defense Advancements
The DART mission also aims to advance our understanding of planetary defense strategies and technologies.
The DART mission will use a kinetic impactor to deflect an asteroid in the Didymos system, demonstrating a new technique for asteroid deflection.
Kinetic Impactor Technology
DART mission will use a kinetic impactor to deflect an asteroid in the Didymos system, marking the first time this technique has been tested in space.
Advanced Instruments and Systems
The DART spacecraft is equipped with a suite of advanced instruments and systems to achieve its objectives.
Modeling and Simulation
Before the DART mission launches, scientists and engineers will use modeling and simulation techniques to test and refine the mission's approach.
The DART mission is a collaborative effortS including international space agencies and private industry.
International Collaboration
The DART mission is a collaborative effortS including the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Italian Space Agency (ASI).
Commercial Partnerships
The DART mission and advance asteroid deflection technology.
Interagency Cooperation
The DART mission is also part of a broader interagency effort to advance planetary defense and asteroid mitigation technologies.
DART Impactor
The DART Impactor: A Revolutionary Technology for Planetary Defense.
- The spacecraft has two very large solar arrays that when fully deployed are each 8.5 meters (27.9 feet) long.
- DART navigated to crash itself into Dimorphos at a speed of approximately 6.1 kilometers (3.8 miles) per second.
- The total mass of the DART spacecraft is approximately 1,345 pounds (610 kilograms) at launch and roughly 1260 pounds (570 kilograms) at impact.
DART is a low-cost spacecraft. The main structure of the spacecraft is a box with dimensions of roughly 1.2 × 1.3 × 1.3 meters (3.9 × 4.3 × 4.3 feet), from which other structures extend to result in measurements of roughly 1.8 meters (5.9 feet) in width, 1.9 meters (6.2 feet) in length, and 2.6 meters (8.5 feet) in height.
Payload: DRACO
DRACO Payload: Advanced Technology for Precise Asteroid Impact Assessment.
- The DART payload consists of a single instrument, the Didymos Reconnaissance and Asteroid Camera for Optical navigation (DRACO).
- DRACO is a high-resolution imager derived from the New Horizons LORRI camera to support navigation and targeting
- DRACO is a narrow-angle telescope with a 208-millimeter aperture and field of view of 0.29 degrees.
LICIACube
LICIACube is a small, lightweight CubeSat that will accompany the DART spacecraft to study the impact of the mission on the Didymos asteroid system.
- DART also carried a CubeSat contributed by Agenzia Spaziale Italiana (ASI), named LICIACube (Light Italian CubeSat for Imaging of Asteroids).
- The DART spacecraft deployed LICIACube 15 days prior to the DART impact on Dimorphos.
- LICIACube captured images of the DART impact and the resulting ejecta cloud.
Technologies
DART is a technology demonstration of a kinetic impactor technology that could be used to mitigate the threat of a hazardous asteroid. The DART project.
- GNC and SMART Nav: DART's primary challenge is to reliably target and squarely impact Dimorphos, the small moonlet of Didymos, a 160-meter-diameter target, when it is 11 million kilometers away from Earth.
- Advanced Ion Propulsion: DART demonstrated an ion propulsion system developed .
- Roll-Out Solar Array (ROSA): Demonstrated on the International Space Station, ROSA provided a compact form and light mass for launch that then deployed into two large arrays once DART is in space, each extending 8.5 meters in length.
Transformational Solar Array
Transformational Solar Array: Advancing Solar Power Technology for Space Missions.
- Enhancing Power Generation and Efficiency: This subheading could focus on how the Transformational Solar Array is designed to improve power generation and efficiency for space missions.
- Enabling New Types of Space Missions: This subheading could explore how the Transformational Solar Array is opening up new possibilities for space missions that were previously not possible due to power constraints.
- Advancing Sustainable Space Exploration: This subheading could focus on how the Transformational Solar Array is contributing to the advancement of sustainable space exploration.
CORE Small Avionics suiTe (CORESAT)
The DART spacecraft avionics system used a single-board computer and an interface module, both with field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-based electronics, to provide flexible control and data handling for the spacecraft's navigation, image processing, communications, and propulsion systems.
- CORESAT is a modular and scalable avionics system designed for small spacecraft and CubeSats.
- The system includes a suite of hardware and software components that enable spacecraft to perform a wide range of functions, from communications and data storage to attitude determination and control.
- CORESAT is designed to be customizable to meet the specific needs of different missions, while also being cost-effective and reliable.
