Still unknown, the space probe of theESA (European Space Agency) and Jaxa (japanese space agency) BepiColombo has just come close once again Mercury. Thursday June 23 was his second overview of the most little planet of the Solar System (4,880 kilometers in diameter), its final destination. For now, the ship benefits from thegravity assistthe second out of six planned, as well as that of the Earth (once) and Venus (twice), before inserting into orbit in 2025 and begin its scientific investigations.
The video above brings together 56 images taken on the fly about fifteen minutes after its passage as close as possible to the surface of Mercury, only 200 kilometers away. The photos of the two series were captured with an interval of 15 to 20 seconds when the spacecraft was between 920 and 6,099 kilometers approximately, for the first camera (MCAM-2), and between 984 and 6,194 kilometers, for the second (MCAM- 3).
In the foreground, we recognize several elements belonging to the space probe. As for the planet itself, we discover very beautiful details of its distinctive and unique reliefs, such as the relatively recent Debussy impact crater, surrounded by its ejecta.
What does the first flyby of Mercury by the BepiColombo probe tell us?
Article ofAdrien Coffinet published on October 21, 2021
The magnetic and particulate environment around Mercury was sampled by BepiColombo during the October 1-2, 2021 flyby, while the planet’s gravitational pull was felt by its accelerometers. Magnetic and accelerometric data were converted into sound files.
As we reported in the article below, BepiColombo made its first flyby of Mercury on the night of 1er to October 2. Besides the Pictures that we presented to you, the Euro-Japanese space probe (ESA and Jaxa) acquired various data on the planet, both on its magnetic environment and particulate than on its gravitational field.
Johannes Benkhoff, project scientist BepiColombo at ESA, explains that, “for some of the instruments of BepiColombo, [ce survol] marked the start of their scientific data collection and a chance to really start preparing for the main mission. These flybys also provide the opportunity to sample regions around Mercury that will not be accessible. once we are in orbit ».
An overview already rich in lessons
The spectrometer ultraviolet Phebus has collected data on the elements present in theatmosphere very sparse planet, or exosphere.
The Gamma Ray Spectrometer and neutrons for Mercury (MGNS), for its part, detected significant fluxes of neutrons and gamma rays. These emissions are produced by the interaction of cosmic rays galactic with superficial layers superiors of Mercury and also provide information on the composition of the surface. A detailed analysis of the data – also acquired during the flyby of Venus – is in progress.
Of the sensors on the arrow of magnetometer recorded the details of the solar wind and magnetic field around Mercury. The magnetometer team was particularly excited about collecting data so close above thesouthern hemisphere of the planet because, until now, only thenorthern hemisphere of Mercury had been magnetically examined by the mission Messenger from NASA.
Sonification of Mercury’s magnetic field data, captured with DFO’s onboard magnetometer. We mean two synthesizers controlled by three characteristics of the magnetic field. The height of the first synthesizer represents the slowly changing amplitude of the background magnetic field. First the solar wind is heard, then the increase and decrease of the planetary magnetic field, then again the solar wind. The lower the height, the stronger the magnetic field. The height of the second synthesizer is itself controlled by variations in the amplitude of the magnetic field. A more turbulent magnetic field is represented by a faster change in height. The crossing of the magnetosheath, after the passage closest to the planet (dotted line), is very clear. Using the amplitude envelope as a volume control for the second synthesizer emphasizes the different magnetospheric regions. © ESA/BepiColombo/MPO-MAG/IGEP-IWF-IC-ISAS
The data has been converted into sound to be audible to the human ear. The sonification resulting captures the variation in intensity of the magnetic field and solar windincluding when the spacecraft passed through the magnetosheath, i.e. the highly turbulent boundary region between the solar wind and the magnetosphere around the planet.
The Italian Spring Accelerometer (ISA), on board the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) of ESA, recorded the accelerations measured by the probe as it experienced the gravitational pull of the planet during the flyby, and its response to temperature change as it entered and exited the shadow of the planet. The ISA also detected the movement of the Phebus spectrometer when it clicked into its “parking” bracket after completing its operations.
Spectrogram created from data recorded by the ISA. These detections are not audible to the human ear but have been “sonified” and associated with a frequency plot to better visualize the different events. The first two distinct sounds correspond respectively to the probe entering and leaving Mercury’s shadow. Another distinct sound is heard around 00 h 05 UTC, corresponding to the return of the Phebus instrument to its “parking” position. The closest pass of the planet took place at 23:34:41 UTC on 1er october. © ESA/BepiColombo/ISA/ASI-Inaf
The ISA will contribute to the study of the internal structure of Mercury and will test Einstein’s theory of general relativity with unprecedented precision. It will also be essential to accurately determine DFO’s orbit around Mercury and the center of mass of Mercury around the Sun.
A preparation for the main mission
Once in orbit of Mercury, complementary measures of the magnetic field carried out by DFO and the Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MMO or Mio) of the Jaxa will lead to a detailed analysis of the magnetic field of the planet and its source, in order to better understand the origin, the evolution and the current state of theinterior of the planet. In addition, the two orbiters will pass through different areas of the magnetosphere of Mercury and at different time scales, simultaneously measuring the evolution of the magnetic field in time and space and its relationship with the solar wind.
Meanwhile, Daniel Heyner of the Technical University of Braunschweig, Germany, who leads DFO’s magnetometer research group, and his colleagues will begin to follow up on questions such as: the magnetic field characteristics of the hemisphere north can they be easily transferred to the southern hemisphere? The magnetic field generated by the dynamo has he changed in the last six years after the mission Messenger, as it does continuously on Earth? New overflight data from BepiColombo – and eventually data from its primary science mission – will be compared to global magnetic field models created from the Messenger mission to produce the most accurate picture yet of Mercury’s magnetic field.
The first images of Mercury brushed by the BepiColombo probe this weekend
Article of Xavier Demeersmannpublished on October 4, 2021
The space probe of the European and Japanese space agencies (ESA and Jaxa) BepiColombo has completed its very first visit of a series of six to Mercury. Here are its first images transmitted to Earth.
It was 11:34 p.m. Universal Time, Friday 1er October, when the space probe BepiColombo brushed past Mercury. Or 1:34 a.m. on October 2 in mainland France. The photos you see here were taken five minutes after it passed closest to the surface of this atmosphereless planet.
After a flight over the earth and two of Venus Since its departure almost three years ago, the Jaxa and ESA spacecraft has just made its very first visit to the planet closest to the Sun, its final destination, around which it will settle permanently in orbit… on December 5, 2025.
Annotated versions of these images taken as it receded mark the most prominent craters such as Lermontov, an impact basin some 166 kilometers in diameter. A region that BepiColombo will be keen to study closely, from the start of its mission, in 2026.
A space probe will graze Mercury, the least explored planet in the Solar System, tonight
Article of Margaux Abellopublished on October 1, 2021
On October 2, in the early morning, BepiColombo will finally pass over thestar little known and coveted by the scientists of the Euro-Japanese mission. But although only a few hours away from reuniting with Mercury, the space probe will be forced to continue its tedious journey until 2025.
Since its launch on October 20, 2018, the orbiters grouped on board BepiColombo have already carried out several flyovers (flyby) planetary, gravitationally assisted (once from earth and twice of venus) with the aim of reaching the only planet in the Solar System without an atmosphere. Once the probe arrives close to Mercury, it will still have to perform six flybys around the celestial body to sufficiently slow down its course, until it is gravitationally captured. These brief vis-à-vis, resembling missed appointments, are essential to succeed in positioning oneself in orbit around the immediate neighbor of the Sun and finally deploying its panoply of instruments dedicated to the meticulous study of the smallest telluric planet.
BepiColombo invites boiling planetary scientists to the planned interview with Mercury
On the night of 1er on October 2, 2021, around 1:34 a.m. in France (UTC+2, summer time), the probe will graze Mercury, about 200 kilometers from its cratered surface, in order to patiently begin its slow slowdown. During a window four hours, BepiColombo will then take advantage of the closeness to take pictures and carry out preliminary analyzes of the planet. The data collected will provide a first scientific insight into what will happen when the main mission is engaged in December 2025.
After seven years of travel and nine flybys… all facets of Mercury will be scrutinized
To date, only two other space probes have been designed to observe Mercury: Marinate 10 (1973 to 1975) and Messenger (2010-2015). BepiColombo is the first non-American Mercury mission, aiming to map and analyze the surface composition of the planet. From its core to its magnetic and gravitational fields, through the examination of its exosphere, the latest technological means mobilized in situ will help researchers dispel the thick mystery surrounding its formation and evolution. The next planned flyby of Mercury will not take place until June 2022.
—
Futura in the Starsit is the unmissable event for astronomy and space enthusiasts. Every 1st of the month, find us for a complete tour of the ephemerides of the month, with advice for best observing what is happening in the sky. A special episode published every 15th of the month will offer you to learn more about a particular object or event that will mark astronomical and space news.
—
Interested in what you just read?