DART: Planetary Defense in the Introductory Physics Curriculum

Abstract

The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) is a National Aeronautics and Space Administration–European Space Agency collaborative mission to test the feasibility of defending Earth from a catastrophic asteroid impact by using a spacecraft to deflect the asteroid away from the planet. Launched on Nov. 23, 2021, the DART spacecraft will intercept the binary asteroid 65803 Didymos in late September or early October 2022, colliding (nearly) head-on to modify its motion measurably.