New Research on the Didymos and Dimorphos Asteroids: Rocky Masses from a Parent Asteroid

Analysis of images from NASA's DART spacecraft shows that two near-Earth celestial bodies named Didymos and Dimorphos are complex asteroids with key similarities formed from the remnants of a 'parent asteroid.' Images captured by DART before its collision with Dimorphos in 2022 indicate that Didymos formed about 12.5 million years ago and Dimorphos about 300,000 years ago. The DART mission, described by NASA as a 'proof-of-concept mission,' successfully demonstrated that the trajectory of a potentially hazardous asteroid could be altered using kinetic force. DART collided with Dimorphos on September 26, 2022, at a speed of approximately 22,530 kilometers per hour and at a distance of about 11 million kilometers from Earth, successfully changing its path. This impact also slightly altered the shape of Dimorphos. Researchers believe Didymos likely initially formed in the main asteroid belt of the solar system (between Mars and Jupiter) and was later moved to the inner solar system. Examination of the largest boulders on Didymos and Dimorphos also confirms that both asteroids are composed of rocky fragments from a parent asteroid. Didymos, with a diameter of about 780 meters, and Dimorphos, with an approximate width of 170 meters, are both rocky asteroids that are gravitationally bound to each other. Currently, Didymos and Dimorphos pose no threat to Earth. The successful impact of NASA's spacecraft on an asteroid and the alteration of its trajectory represents NASA's efforts to deflect an asteroid's path.