The Hera investigation has swing around Mars , using the satellite ’s gravitative drag to toss away itself toward its asteroid target . During its abbreviated tryst with the Red Planet , Hera caught a glance of the less - reckon side of Mars ’ smaller , tidally - locked moon as it orbited its home major planet .
The European Space Agency ( ESA)launched its Hera mission on October 7 , 2024 , to inspect thedamage induce by NASA ’s DART mission(Double Asteroid Redirection Test ) when it blast into an asteroid to redirect its orbit . Hera is set to reach its asteroid prey in 2026 , but the distance investigation get to dust off its skill tools for the first time during its Mars flyby on Wednesday .
The space vehicle came as close as 3,106 mile ( 5,000 kilometers ) to Mars , allowing the major planet ’s gravitation to shift Hera ’s trajectory toward its target as it cruised through deep space . During its flyby , Hera activated a trio of instruments to see the surface of the Red Planet , as well as its moon Deimos .
Mars and Deimos as viewed by Hera’s hyperspectral imager.© ESA
“ These instrument have been try out before , during Hera ’s going away from Earth , but this is the first metre that we have employ them on a small remote moon for which we still lack knowledge – demonstrate their fantabulous carrying out in the cognitive operation ! ” ESA ’s Hera foreign mission scientist Michael Kueppers state in astatement .
Mars has two moon , Phobos and Deimos . Deimos is a tiny small guy , measuring a simple 7.7 miles ( 12.4 kilometre ) across . It may have broken off from Mars in the aftermath of a giant wallop , or it ’s a small-scale asteroid enamor by the planet ’s gravity . It fill in one field around Mars every 30 hours .
away from bewitch image of the somewhat misshapen moon , Hera also performed some joint observation of Deimos with ESA’sMars Express , which has been in orbit around Mars for more than two 10 .
A stunning view of Deimos, as captured by Hera. © ESA
Hera ’s fair game binary asteroid system is much smaller than Deimos . Dimorphos is a 558 - foot - wide ( 170 - time ) infinite rock that orbits its large 2,625 - animal foot - wide ( 800 - meter ) companion , Didymos .
In September 2022 , NASA ’s 1,340 - British pound sterling ballistic capsule smashed into Dimorphos to somewhat nudge it as a test of erratic defence . The mission was a success , proving that kinetic impactors can be used to airt unsafe asteroids should one be headed towards Earth . Datasets foregather by ground - ground optic and radio telescopes show that , following the hit , Dimorphos ’ orbital full stop around Didymos shorten from 11 hour and 55 minutes to 11 hours and 23 min .
primer coat - based observations alone are not enough . That ’s where Hera come in in , perform a detail , post - impact survey from infinite . The spacecraft is schedule for a follow - up maneuver in February 2026 , followed by a series of pusher kindling start in October 2026 to fine - tune its trajectory to reach the Didymos arrangement in December 2026 .
Deimos crossing Mars. Credit: ESA
“ This has been the Hera squad ’s first exciting experience of exploration , but not our last , ” ESA Hera mission manager Ian Carnelli said in a argument . “ In 21 months the ballistic capsule will reach our target asteroids , and start our collapse site investigation of the only target in our Solar System to have had its orbit measurably altered by human action . ”
asteroidsESAMars
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