The spaceship that NASA sent to deliberately crashes into an asteroidlast month it was possible to remove a space rock from its natural orbit, which is the first time, the head of the US space agency said.

This mission will allow mankind to learn how to protect themselves from a potential threat in the future by diverting asteroids from their course.

CONFIRMED: analysis of data received in the last 2 weeks #DARTMission the team shows that the Dimorphos impact successfully changed the asteroid’s orbit by 32 minutes – the first time humans have changed the orbit of a celestial object in space! https://t.co/MjmUAFwVSO pic.twitter.com/4Qiy1mC4gK

— NASA Asteroid Watch (@AsteroidWatch) October 11, 2022

From the observations of the telescope, presented by NASA at a press briefing, it follows that the “suicide mission” of the DART spacecraft on September 26 achieved its main goal: to change the asteroid’s trajectory with kinetic energy.

The DART spacecraft deliberately crashed into the asteroid Dimorphos, a satellite of the larger Gemini asteroid. According to Bill Nelson, this collision reduced Dimorph’s orbit by 32 minutes.

A kamikaze ship, slightly smaller than a car, crashed into an asteroid at speeds in excess of 20,000 kilometers per hour. Dimorphos has a diameter of 160 meters and does not pose any danger to planet Earth.

The ship traveled about ten months after launching from California. In order to hit a target as small as Dimorphus, the last leg of her flight was fully automated, as if it were a homing missile.

^{According to REUTERS, AFP, APE-MPE}