Deep Impact (spacecraft)

Deep Impact^[1][2]

Artist's impression of the Deep Impact space probe after deployment of the Impactor
Mission type	Flyby · impactor (9P/Tempel)
Operator	NASA · JPL
COSPAR ID	2005-001A
SATCAT no.	28517
Website	www.jpl.nasa.gov/missions/deep-impact/
Mission duration	Final: 8 years, 6 months, 26 days
Spacecraft properties
Manufacturer	Ball Aerospace · University of Maryland
Launch mass	Total: 973 kg Spacecraft: 601 kg (1,325 lb)[3] Impactor: 372 kg (820 lb)[3]
Dimensions	3.3 × 1.7 × 2.3 m (10.8 × 5.6 × 7.5 ft)[3]
Power	92 W (solar array / NiH2 battery)[3]
Start of mission
Launch date	January 12, 2005, 18:47:08 (2005-01-12UTC18:47:08) UTC
Rocket	Delta II 7925 /PAM-D
Launch site	Cape Canaveral SLC-17B
Contractor	Boeing
End of mission
Disposal	Contact lost
Last contact	August 8, 2013 (2013-08-09)
Flyby of Tempel 1
Closest approach	July 4, 2005, 06:05 UTC
Distance	575 km (357 mi)
Tempel 1 impactor
Impact date	July 4, 2005, 05:52 UTC
Flyby of Earth
Closest approach	December 31, 2007, 19:29:20 UTC
Distance	15,567 km (9,673 mi)
Flyby of Earth
Closest approach	December 29, 2008
Distance	43,450 km (27,000 mi)
Flyby of Earth
Closest approach	June 27, 2010, 22:25:13  UTC
Distance	30,496 km (18,949 mi)
Flyby of Hartley 2
Closest approach	November 4, 2010, 13:50:57 UTC
Distance	694 km (431 mi)
Official insignia of the Deep Impact mission Discovery program ← MESSENGER Dawn →

Deep Impact was a NASA space probe launched from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station on January 12, 2005.^[4] It was designed to study the interior composition of the comet Tempel 1 (9P/Tempel), by releasing an impactor into the comet. At 05:52 UTC on July 4, 2005, the Impactor successfully collided with the comet's nucleus. The impact excavated debris from the interior of the nucleus, forming an impact crater. Photographs taken by the spacecraft showed the comet to be more dusty and less icy than had been expected. The impact generated an unexpectedly large and bright dust cloud, obscuring the view of the impact crater.

Previous space missions to comets, such as Giotto, Deep Space 1, and Stardust, were fly-by missions. These missions were able to photograph and examine only the surfaces of cometary nuclei, and even then from considerable distances. The Deep Impact mission was the first to eject material from a comet's surface, and the mission garnered considerable publicity from the media, international scientists, and amateur astronomers alike.

Upon the completion of its primary mission, proposals were made to further utilize the spacecraft. Consequently, Deep Impact flew by Earth on December 31, 2007, on its way to an extended mission, designated EPOXI, with a dual purpose to study extrasolar planets and comet Hartley 2 (103P/Hartley).^[5] Communication was unexpectedly lost in August 2013 while the craft was heading for another asteroid flyby.