[LOOK] Here's a Roundup of NASA's Best Space Photos This Week!

Let's take a look at NASA's best space photos for this week!

This week in space has been a thrilling ride!

NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) has successfully smashed into an asteroid to test its planetary defense system. NASA's Juno spacecraft has also captured the first images of Jupiter's icy moon Europa. And astronauts from the International Space Station (ISS) kept an eye on the eye of Hurricane Ian as it swirled toward Florida.

Indeed, NASA has been on an exciting ride, and we are delighted with detailed and stunning space photos. Let's take a look at some of the best snapshots that NASA has released this week.

The Before and After of DART's Asteroid Impact

NASA released a video depicting the approaching point of view from DART's Draco camera towards Dimorphos, and the space agency reported that it was an impact success.

As the spacecraft approached Dimorphos, it became clear that it was a direct collision, and the mission's success in its test was already established.

Here are the last images captured before the impact:

DART
About 2.5 minutes prior to the DART spacecraft's collision, the asteroid Didymos (top left) and its tiny moon Dimorphos were visible. The DRACO imager on board captured the picture at a distance of 570 miles (920 kilometers). NASA/Johns Hopkins APL
DART
11 seconds before impact, the DART satellite captured this image of the asteroid moonlet Dimorphos. This picture was taken by the DART's onboard DRACO imager at a distance of 42 miles (68 kilometers). NASA/Johns Hopkins APL
DART
The DRACO imager on NASA's DART mission captured the final complete image of the asteroid moonlet Dimorphos at a distance of around 7 miles (12 kilometres) and two seconds before impact. NASA/Johns Hopkins APL

Hubble and Webb's Detailed Views of the Asteroid Impact

NASA's iconic and powerful telescopes were eye-witnesses to the epic asteroid impact of the DART mission, proving to be a successful initial planetary defense test for the space agency.

This marks the first time that Hubble and James Webb simultaneously observed the same celestial target.

HUBBLE/WEBB SIDE-BY-SIDE OF DIMORPHOS EJECTA
The Didymos-Dimorphos system was observed in these Hubble and Webb photos taken several hours after NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) purposely collided with the moonlet asteroid. It was the first time in history that the kinetic impact technique—which involves using a spacecraft to alter an asteroid's orbit—had been put to the test. Hubble observations were conducted in one filter, WFC3/UVIS F350LP (assigned the color blue), while Webb observed at F070W (0.7 microns, assigned the color red). NASA, ESA, Jian-Yang Li (PSI); animation: Alyssa Pagan (STScI)

The Icy Europa

The most recent flyby mission of Juno to Europa, according to NASA, produced several photographs that are now accessible to the general public. It was also the spacecraft's closest approach to the moon.

The ice-covered moon of Jupiter, known as Europa, is unusual because most natural satellites only appear as space rocks orbiting planets.

NASA’s Juno Shares First Image From Flyby of Jupiter’s Moon Europa
NASA/JPL-Caltech/SWRI/MSSS

An Eye for a Hurricane's Eye

The astronauts on the ISS have been keeping an eye on Hurricane Ian. They recently captured breathtaking photographs of the hurricane on Monday, Sept. 26, as it headed south of Cuba into Florida.

NASA released these images on Wednesday, Sept. 28.

Hurricane Ian
NASA

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Written by Joaquin Victor Tacla

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