impactor

noun

im·​pac·​tor im-ˈpak-tər 

variants or impacter

1

: a machine (such as a steam or air hammer or a pile driver) or part that operates by striking blows

2

: meteorite

Examples of impactor in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Unlike the European Space Agency’s Hera mission, which was launched separately to examine the aftermath of NASA’s DART test, China plans to include both the impactor and observation spacecraft within the same mission. — Bojan Stojkovski, Interesting Engineering, 19 July 2026

But, especially when an impactor is big, most of it propagates into the mantle below. — Jacek Krywko, ArsTechnica, 5 July 2026

Earth’s moon, for example, is thought to have formed from a Mars-sized impactor striking our planet when our world was between 60 million and 140 million years old. — Jenna Ahart, Scientific American, 9 June 2026

The simulated collision matched a roughly 17-kilometer-wide impactor slamming into Mercury at speeds of up to 30 kilometers per second, generating a dense, temporary atmosphere rich in water vapor around the planet, the team reports in the new study. — Sharmila Kuthunur, Space.com, 28 May 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1872, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for impactor

• attractor
• cofactor
• compactor
• contactor
• contractor
• distractor
• extractor
• protractor
• reactor
• redactor
• refractor
• retractor