The Deep Impact Mission was a NASA space probe designed to study the interior composition of the comet Tempel 1. Launched on January 12, 2005, the mission aimed to provide insights into the formation of the solar system by examining one of its most primitive bodies.
The mission consisted of two primary components:
The Deep Impact Mission was launched aboard a Delta II 7925 rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station. The spacecraft traveled approximately 268 million miles (431 million kilometers) to reach its target. The journey took about six months, with the impact scheduled for July 4, 2005.
The impactor successfully collided with Tempel 1 at 10:52 UTC on July 4, 2005, traveling at 10.2 km/s (23,000 mph). The collision created a crater estimated to be 150 meters (490 feet) wide, revealing fresh subsurface material. The flyby spacecraft captured images and data during and after the impact, providing invaluable information about the comet's composition.
Key findings from the Deep Impact Mission include:
After the primary mission, the flyby spacecraft was renamed EPOXI (Extrasolar Planet Observation and Deep Impact Extended Investigation) and continued to perform additional scientific observations, including studying extrasolar planets and making a flyby of comet Hartley 2 in 2010.
The Deep Impact Mission provided a wealth of data that has helped refine our understanding of comets, their role in the solar system's history, and their potential contribution to life on Earth. The mission's success paved the way for future comet studies, including the Rosetta Mission to comet 67P/Churyumov–Gerasimenko.