2 publishers · first seen Wed, 11 Nov 2026 22:12 UTC · updated Thu, 12 Nov 2026 12:03 UTC
A European spacecraft, Hera, has started inspecting the asteroid Didymos and its moonlet Dimorphos, which was rammed by NASA's Dart spacecraft in 2022 as a planetary defense test. The European Space Agency announced that Hera is currently studying the pair from 15 to 18 miles (25 to 30 kilometers) away. The Dart spacecraft's impact shortened Dimorphos' orbit around Didymos and nudged it into a slightly different path around the sun. Hera, launched in 2024, will venture closer next month, to 12 miles (20 kilometers) away, carrying 25 science instruments and two Cubesats to survey Dimorphos and attempt a landing.
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