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SpaceX will launch Europe’s Hera spacecraft toward the asteroid Dimorphos on Monday (October 7) to conduct a post-impact assessment. You can follow the launch live.
The European Space AgencyThe Hera mission will visit Dimorphos – NASA’s asteroid ARROW (Double Asteroid Redirection Test) went off course in September 2022. Hera will do it assess the consequences Observe this impact and examine both the surface and the internal structure of the asteroid in more detail.
The most important Hera Spaceship and its two partners Cubesatscalled Milani and Juventas, are expected to start on one SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket at 10:52 a.m. EDT (1452 GMT) on Monday (October 7) from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida. You can watch the launch live here on Space.com, courtesy of ESA, or watch it directly about the agency.
Dimorphos is a moon of the near-Earth asteroid Didymos. The binary Asteroid system was previously visited by NASA’s DART spacecraft, which intentionally collided with Dimorphos in 2022 and changed its orbit around Didymos in a demonstration of a planetary defense technique designed to alter the trajectory of a potentially dangerous asteroid.
If all goes well, Hera will arrive on Dimorphos in late 2026. The spacecraft will assess the size and depth of the crater created by DART, as well as the efficiency of the impact.
Related: Check out the first images of DART’s wild asteroid crash!
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— Europe assembles Hera spacecraft to observe aftermath of DART asteroid crash (video, photos)
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— NASA’s DART Asteroid Smashing Mission: The Ultimate Guide
Hera will also deploy two cubesats to study the internal structure, surface minerals and gravity at Dimorphos. This data will help researchers better understand how the impacts have affected the environment asteroid and in turn provide valuable information for future asteroid deflection missions.
Hera and his two cubesats reached their launch site in Florida at the beginning of September. The mission is scheduled to launch on Monday (October 7), but the launch period runs until October 27. Launching at any time within this time window will allow Hera to reach her destination in Dimorphos. Be sure to follow the mission and check back here on Space.com for coverage of the launch.
