Robert Lea is a science journalist in the U.K. whose articles have been published in Physics World, New Scientist, Astronomy Magazine, All About Space, Newsweek and ZME Science. He also writes about science communication for Elsevier and the European Journal of Physics. Rob holds a bachelor of science degree in physics and astronomy from the U.K.’s Open University. Follow him on Twitter @sciencef1rst.
"DART was a smashing success," Andy Rivkin, a researcher at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory , said as he and other DART researchers presented the results of the mission at the 8th Planetary Defense Conference in Vienna, Austria, on Monday .
The change in orbit was a result of the alteration of the velocity of Dimorphos caused by the impact, with the rock now traveling at around 2.7 millimeters per second more slowly than it did before the collision, according to University of Maryland astrophysicist and planetary scientist Harrison Agrusa.
The tail of the material shaken loose by the impact persisted for months after the encounter between DART and Dimorphos, and Rivkin pointed out it is still visible in the latest data collected from the system. This ejecta is also helping to shift the trajectory of the asteroid system and will be monitored for months to come.
The appearance of the surface of Dimorphos was recorded by DART's only scientific instrument, the Didymos Reconnaissance and Asteroid Camera for Optical navigation . DRACO imaged the surface of the moonlet as DART hurtled toward it, capturing its final image just seconds prior to impact. It is clear from these images that the appearance of Dimorphos isn't quite what the team expected.
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