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Meter-Scale Boulder Ejecta From DART Reveal Unexpected Deflection Dynamics

New analysis of LICIACube images shows that clustered boulder debris impart significant lateral momentum that must be integrated into models for upcoming planetary defense missions

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Overview

  • A July 4 paper in the Planetary Science Journal reports that DART’s impact on Dimorphos ejected meter-scale boulders carrying more than three times the spacecraft’s momentum
  • Researchers used LICIACube imagery to track 104 boulders from 0.2 to 3.6 meters in radius moving at speeds up to 52 meters per second
  • The ejecta formed two distinct clusters, with the larger southern debris field likely originating from the disruption of Atabaque and Bodhran by DART’s solar panels
  • Off-axis momentum from these asymmetric boulder streams could have tilted Dimorphos’s orbital plane by as much as one degree, complicating deflection calculations
  • These findings will inform refined physics models for ESA’s Hera mission in 2026 and shape planning for future kinetic impactor strategies