The BepiColombo mission begins its arrival at Mercury after nearly 8 years
ESA and Japan’s space agency will split the spacecraft into two orbiters for the first time around another planet, beginning months of science operations.
- The Mercury Transfer Module will separate from the BepiColombo spacecraft stack today, Thursday, at 8 a.m. ET, marking a critical milestone for the European Space Agency's mission to Mercury.
- Jointly operated by the ESA and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency , the mission deploys two independent spacecraft: the Mercury Planetary Orbiter to observe the planet's surface, and the Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter to study the space environment.
- The spacecraft faces extreme conditions, with surface temperatures reaching 800 degrees Fahrenheit. Ignacio Tanco, head of Inner Solar System Mission Operations at the ESA, said the environment is "essentially equivalent to operating with a very hot pizza oven running right on your back."
- Scientists hope to probe mysteries including surface depressions called hollows and investigate why Mercury is so dense for its size, according to Geraint Jones, lead project scientist for BepiColombo at the ESA.
- The orbiters will be captured by Mercury's gravity on November 21, then separate and enter their final orbital positions by March before science operations officially begin in April.
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After 10 Billion Kilometres Travelled, the BepiColombo Mission Begins a High-Risk Arrival to Mercury
Sent in 2018 to the planet closest to the Sun, the vehicle will separate, on Thursday 3 September at 2 p.m., from its propulsion device so that the two probes that compose it will orbit. A complex manoeuvre, because the distance prevents "any operation in real time".
The European-Japanese mission is entering the decisive phase today. After eight years of joint journey, the two orbiters are turning into an orbit around the sun-next planet.
Mercury is the smallest rocky planet in the Solar System, and it is also the one we know the least, due in particular to its proximity to our star, the Sun. The Euro-Japanese space mission BepiColombo, part of the Earth in 2018, is preparing for a high-risk arrival to its final destination. - After a long journey of 8 years, the space mission BepiColombo begins its approach to Mercury (Sciences).
BepiColombo mission 1 step closer to Mercury today
The BepiColombo mission has been maneuvering its way into orbit around Mercury for 8 years. On September 3, it will release 2 orbiters in Mercury orbit. The post BepiColombo mission 1 step closer to Mercury today first appeared on EarthSky.
In 2018, the European and Japanese mission BepiColombo went towards Mercury. Objective: to better understand this still very mysterious land planet.
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