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ScienceQuiet 3d · day 3

BepiColombo arrives at Mercury after 8 years and propulsion setback

The ESA-JAXA probe completes its final phase, beginning descent to low orbit around the closest planet to the sun.

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What to know

  • BepiColombo has successfully completed its final major milestone—propulsion module separation on September 3—and is now beginning descent to Mercury orbit after 8 years and 6 billion miles of travel.
  • A propulsion malfunction delayed the probe's arrival by nearly a year, but the mission recovered through nine gravity-assist maneuvers around Earth, Venus, and Mercury.
  • Two separate orbiters will investigate Mercury simultaneously starting April 2027, the first such dual-probe mission to the closest planet to the sun, studying its magnetic field, surface, and internal structure.
  • Mercury presents extreme environmental challenges: surface temperatures exceeding 800°F by day and –290°F at night, with no atmosphere to buffer the swings.

“Being so close to the sun, Mercury's surface can be intensely hot—over 800 degrees Fahrenheit or about 430 degrees Celsius. And because the small planet has essentially no atmosphere, temperatures drop to –290 degrees Fahrenheit (–180 Celsius) at night.”

Wired · Wired ↗ · Sep 20

European Space Agency (ESA) Joint mission partnerJapan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) Joint mission partnerBepiColombo Space probe

BepiColombo arrives at Mercury after 8 years and propulsion setback
wired.com

How it unfolded 1 development · click the chart to see its coverage articlespostscomments

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Sep 22yesterdaynow · 12:59 AM ET
  1. upcoming

    Full-scale scientific observations begin — After completing orbital deployment procedures—including the deployment of Mio's sun shield—both the Mercury Planetary Orbiter and Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter begin coordinated scientific observations. This marks the first time multiple probes will simultaneously orbit Mercury.

  2. upcoming

    Mercury Planetary Orbiter reaches final orbit — The MPO component is scheduled to reach its final, lower altitude orbit around Mercury to study the planet's surface and internal structure.

  3. 1

    BepiColombo begins descent to low orbit around Mercury

    After eight years in space and nine gravity-assist maneuvers using Earth, Venus, and Mercury, the probe enters the final phase of its approach, beginning its descent to establish orbit around Mercury.

    “now after eight years in space, BepiColombo is beginning its descent to low orbit around Mercury.”
    — Wired
    1. 1 outlet After 8 Years in Space, ‘BepiColombo’ Is Finally Approaching Mercury

      first by WIRED, 2d ago

    • Following a difficult journey, the probe will soon begin unravelling the mysteries of Mercury’s magnetic field and internal structure. Read the full story at the link above.

      wiredmagaziner/space2d agoview on r/space ↗
  4. background

    Propulsion module successfully separates from BepiColombo — Ground control confirms the successful separation of the propulsion module from the rest of the craft, marking the final phase of the ESA-JAXA joint mission. All transmissions indicated the separation went smoothly after the probe's 6 billion-mile journey.

  5. background

    BepiColombo experiences propulsion malfunction — The probe suffers a malfunction with its propulsion system, forcing a course change to reach Mercury at reduced power and pushing the arrival date back by nearly a year from the original schedule.