NUNZIUM

The DART project (Double Asteroid Redirection Test) is a NASA mission designed to measure how much a spacecraft can deflect an asteroid through an impact with a spacecraft. The mission started on 24 November 2021 with the launch of a spatial probe that crushed intentionally on 26 September 2022 into Dimorphos, a minor moon of the asteroid Didymos. Two days ago, on Tuesday October 11, NASA announced that Dimorphos' orbital period had shortened by 32 minutes - surpassing the "success threshold" by more than one minute. DART is the world’s first test of its kind: a step towards a defense system for our planet against potentially threatening asteroids coming from deep space. The project cost USD 330 million and took seven years to develop. The results obtained justify further efforts toward testing and improving asteroid deflection methods. However, in order to sufficiently displace a bigger asteroid representing a threat to Earth, it is necessary to act with ample margin. It would mean identifying threats months if not years in advance, which implies having a global and connected surveillance network. A planetary defense system designed to prevent a potential doomsday meteorite collision with Earth. Something possible only with full collaboration among nations, rather than a fragmented politics of nationalistic interests. Is the world ready to protect itself from asteroids?