Defense Test: NASA spacecraft crashes into an asteroid

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Defense Test: NASA spacecraft crashes into an asteroid (Image: Screengrab from live feed by @NASA)
Defense Test: NASA spacecraft crashes into an asteroid (Image: Screengrab from live feed by @NASA)

New Delhi : To make earth free from asteroid collisions, NASA performed a defence test and rammed a spacecraft into an asteroid. The harmless event was held at 7 million miles (11.3 million kilometres) away, with the spacecraft named Dart plowing into the space rock at 14,000 mph (22,500 kph). The prime aim of the test was to alter the asteroid's orbit or crush it into pieces.

NASA also shared the moment of impact on its official Twitter page. Check the video below:

Scientists on earth focused their telescopes at the same point to capture the event. But, it will take some time to determine the results and understand the success of the mission to see how much orbit has been changed of the asteroid after the impact.

The total cost of the mission stands at around $325 million and it is the first time when there is an attempt to shift the position of an asteroid or any other natural object in space.

NASA Administrator Bill Nelson reminded people earlier in the day via Twitter, "No, this is not a movie plot." He added in a prerecorded video: "We’ve all seen it on movies like ‘Armageddon,’ but the real-life stakes are high."

Asteroids hitting planet earth are common and the extinction of dinosaurs from our planet is the biggest example of Asteroid impact on our planet.