However, the target asteroid they plan to test hasn't been announced yet. The idea behind kinetic impaction is to change the orbital course of a dangerous asteroid by driving a massive, high-speed spaceship into it. Wu said that a probe would closely investigate a near-Earth asteroid before crashing into it in the proposed test. Wu's remarks fell on Space Day, an annual commemoration of China's first satellite, Dongfanghong-1, which was launched in 1970.ĬNSA's monitoring program will be paired with an engineering effort that includes a high thrust rocket that can carry a kinetic impactor - a payload designed to hit the target asteroid with enough force to change its orbit. China Wants to Destroy An Asteroid Just Like NASAĪccording to the Chinese state-owned news outlet Global Times, CNSA deputy head Wu Yanhua laid down China's preliminary plans to embark on the planetary defense. The asteroid, Bennu, may hold clues to the origin of the solar system and the source of water and organic molecules found on Earth. mission to sample an asteroid, retrieve at least two ounces of surface material and return it to Earth for study. 8, 2016 at Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida. (Photo : Joel Kowsky/NASA via Getty Images)ĬAPE CANAVERAL, FL - SEPTEMBER 8: In this handout photo provided by NASA, The United Launch Alliance Atlas V rocket carrying NASA's Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) spacecraft lifts off on from Space Launch Complex 41 on Thursday, Sept.
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