European Space Agency prepares launch of first planetary defense mission

The European Space Agency (ESA) prepares to launch its Hera spacecraft in October on its first planetary defense mission. Hera is part of the international Asteroid Impact and Deflection Assessment (AIDA), which in its first part saw NASA impact the small moon Dimorphos in the double-asteroid Didymos System during its DART (Double Asteroid Redirection Test) mission. DART was the first time that humanity was able to alter the orbit of a celestial body, Ignacio Tanco, Hera Operation Manager at ESA. Hera will help in understanding the physical properties of asteroids, which is important if you want to repeat the experiment or if you actually need to defend the Earth from asteroids, said Juan Luis Cano, ESA's Planetary Defense Coordinator.

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