NASA's DART asteroid impact mission is about to launch, and you can watch it live, along with many other science updates.
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The Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) is scheduled to launch at 1:20 a.m. EST (0620 GMT) on Wednesday, November 24, aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 from Vandenberg Space Base in California.
Live coverage of the launch will be available on NASA TV, the agency's YouTube, app and social media channels starting at 12:30 a.m. EST (0530 GMT). You can watch all the action on this page and on the Space.com homepage, courtesy of NASA.
DART is an ambitious mission that aims to hit and redirect an asteroid for the first time in history. It is expected to collide with an asteroid, Dimorphos, in the fall of 2022. Dimorphos orbits an asteroid called Didymos, which is close enough for scientists to see any impact using ground-based telescopes. A follow-up mission called Hera (from the European Space Agency) will visit the same system in 2026.
Before and during the mission, NASA is offering many activities for the public to participate in. Members of the public can register to virtually watch the launch to access resources, watch videos, and receive a virtual visitor presentation passport stamp.
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The agency will have a virtual NASA Social on Facebook, where you can interact with NASA and DART team members and watch the launch. You can also take part in a short Planetary Defenders campaign, where you can answer questions to earn a “planetary defender” certificate.
Additionally, you can follow the mission on social media using the hashtag #DARTMission. On Twitter, go to @NASA, @AsteroidWatch, @NASASocial, and @NASA_LSP. On Facebook, go to NASA's page here and NASA LSP. On Instagram, go to NASA's page here.
NASA also has a series of live updates that the public can watch and ask questions on social media. Here is a list of the updates, participants, and public participation opportunities:
4:00 p.m. EST (2100 GMT) – DART research and engineering briefing on NASA Television with the following panelists. The public can ask questions on social media using #AskNASA.
Lori Glaze, director of the Planetary Science Division of NASA's Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington
Tom Statler, DART program scientist, Planetary Science Directorate, NASA Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters
Andy Rivkin, head of the DART research team, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory
Betsy Congdon, DART systems engineer, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory
Simone Pirrotta, project manager of the Light Italian Cubesat for Imaging of Asteroids (LICIACube), the Italian space agency
See also: Huge asteroid heading towards Earth – We will survive, says NASA
7 p.m. EST (1200 GMT Tuesday, November 23) – DART pre-launch press conference on NASA Television with the following participants. The public can ask questions on social media using #AskNASA.
Thomas Zurbuchen, associate administrator, NASA Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters
Lindley Johnson, planetary defense officer, NASA Planetary Defense Coordination Office, NASA Headquarters
Ed Reynolds, DART project manager, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory
Omar Baez, senior launch manager, Launch Services Program, NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida
Julianna Scheiman, director of civil satellite missions, SpaceX
Capt. Maximillian Rush, weather officer, Space Launch Delta 30, Vandenberg Space Force Base
4:00 p.m. EST (2100 GMT) – NASA Science Live, featuring the following panelists. This event will be broadcast live on the agency’s Facebook, Twitter and YouTube channels. Members of the public can participate live by submitting questions in the comments section of the streams or using #AskNASA.
Lori Glaze, director of the Planetary Science Division of NASA's Science Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters
Nancy Chabot, DART coordinator, Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory
Joshua Ramirez Rodriguez, lead engineer for telecommunications subsystem integration and testing, Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory
12:30 a.m. EST (0530 GMT) – NASA TV's live launch coverage begins.
1:20 a.m. EST (10:20 p.m. PST on November 23/0620 GMT) – DART mission liftoff.
