NASA's Deep Impact space probe, Extrasolar Planet Observation and Deep Impact Extended Investigation (EPOXI), launched on January 12, 2005, embarked on a groundbreaking mission to explore the mysteries of comets by literally making a deep impact. This ambitious spacecraft was designed to rendezvous with comet Tempel 1 and deploy a kinetic impactor, which was essentially a projectile, to collide with the comet's nucleus.
The purpose of this celestial collision was to excavate material from the comet's surface, providing scientists with a unique opportunity to study its composition and gain insights into the early solar system's formation. The impact event itself, along with the data gathered from the impactor and the main spacecraft, allowed researchers to analyze the comet's structure and learn about the building blocks of comets and also offered valuable clues about the origins of our solar system.
