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Thanks to the Hubble telescope, astronomers from the University of California (USA) have discovered more than 30 rocks that were likely torn from the asteroid Dimorph when NASA’s
As reported by Ukrinform, this is stated in the NASA press release.
According to Hubble photometry, 37 rocks vary in size from 0.9 m to 6.7 m.
They’re receding from the asteroid at just over 800 meters per hour—about the walking speed of a giant tortoise.
The total mass of these discovered rocks is about 0.1% of Dimorph’s mass.
“This is an impressive observation – much better than I expected. We see a bunch of rocks carrying mass and energy from the impact target. The number, size, and shape of the rocks are consistent with the fall from the Dimorph’s surface at the time of impact. This observation tells us for the first time what happens when an asteroid collides,” said David Jewitt, a planetary scientist at the University of California, who used Hubble to monitor changes in the asteroid during and after the DART impact.
As Ukrinform reported, in September last year the American space agency NASA deliberately directed the DART spacecraft to the asteroid Dimorph as part of a test to protect the Earth from collisions with space objects.
Photo: NASA
Source: Ukrinform
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