Unusual Behavior Detected in Asteroid Struck by NASA's Spacecraft

The asteroid Dimorphos, which was intentionally crashed into by a NASA rocket as part of the DART mission, is exhibiting unexpected behavior. Recent observations show that Dimorphos may be tumbling in its orbit around its parent asteroid and continuously slowing down, contrary to NASA's predictions. High school students first detected these changes, and the DART team has confirmed a slowdown in Dimorphos' orbit. The cause of the steady slowdown is believed to be a swarm of boulders that fell back onto Dimorphos after the impact. Further investigation will be conducted by the European Space Agency's Hera spacecraft in 2026.