News by Levels · Level 3 · Student worksheet

Hera Reveals a New Close-Up of the Didymos Asteroid System

Name: __________________________ Date: __________________

Read the story

The European Space Agency's Hera mission has returned its first close-up image of the Didymos asteroid system. Taken from roughly 60 kilometres away, the image clearly shows the larger asteroid, while its companion Dimorphos is mostly hidden in shadow.

NASA deliberately crashed its DART spacecraft into Dimorphos in September 2022. The impact shortened the smaller body's orbit around Didymos by approximately 33 minutes, demonstrating that a spacecraft could measurably alter an asteroid's motion.

Hera will investigate the consequences of that collision to improve understanding of asteroid deflection. The mission team plans to release detailed images of both bodies on November 25; the investigation's final findings are not yet available.

Source: Hera Mission / Observatoire de la Cote d'Azur, 2026-11-05. https://www.heramission.space/

Read and practise

1. What did DART demonstrate?

   1. A spacecraft could measurably alter an asteroid’s motion
   2. The asteroids had collided naturally
   3. A spacecraft could stop every asteroid

2. What does the team plan for November 25?

   1. To crash DART into Dimorphos
   2. To announce completed final findings
   3. To release detailed images

Your turn

Separate the completed DART impact from Hera’s planned work.

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Read online: https://newsbylevels.com/news/hera-close-view-didymos-asteroid-dart-november-2026/level-3/