NASA successfully changed an asteroid's orbit around the SUN

"The mission was hailed as the first-ever successful demonstration of planetary defence, proving humanity can alter an asteroid's trajectory. But now, scientists have revealed the test also knocked both asteroids off their regular orbit around the Sun. Researchers have calculated that the speed of Didymos as it orbits the Sun has been reduced by 11.7 micrometres per second as a result of the collision."

"The change to its orbit - although small - marks the 'the first time a human-made object has measurably altered the path of a celestial body around the Sun'. This shift occurred because, although Didymos was not directly hit during the Dart mission, it is linked by gravity to its smaller moonlet. As a result, changes to one asteroid affect the other."

"'This is a tiny change to the orbit, but given enough time, even a tiny change can grow to a significant deflection,' said Thomas Statler, lead scientist for solar system small bodies at NASA Headquarters in Washington. 'The team's amazingly precise measurement again validates kinetic impact as a technique for defending Earth against asteroid hazards.'"

NASA's 2022 Dart mission achieved a significant breakthrough in planetary defense by deliberately colliding a spacecraft with Dimorphos, a small moonlet orbiting the larger asteroid Didymos. The impact successfully altered Dimorphos's trajectory around its parent asteroid. New research reveals the collision also affected Didymos's orbit around the Sun, reducing its speed by 11.7 micrometres per second. This represents the first time a human-made object has measurably changed a celestial body's path around the Sun. Scientists determined this by analyzing nearly 6,000 observations of Didymos passing in front of stars. The gravitational connection between the two asteroids means changes to one affect the other. This discovery validates kinetic impact as an effective planetary defense technique and demonstrates that targeting small moonlets could deflect larger asteroids threatening Earth.

Read at Mail Online