{"id":12538,"date":"2020-04-10T21:00:03","date_gmt":"2020-04-10T13:00:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/bepicolombo-flies-by-earth-completing-first-leg-of-journey-to-mercury\/"},"modified":"2020-04-10T21:00:03","modified_gmt":"2020-04-10T13:00:03","slug":"bepicolombo-flies-by-earth-completing-first-leg-of-journey-to-mercury","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/bepicolombo-flies-by-earth-completing-first-leg-of-journey-to-mercury\/","title":{"rendered":"BepiColombo flies by Earth, completing first leg of journey to Mercury"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A sequence of images captured by one of the selfie cameras on BepiColombo shortly before the closest approach to Earth. Credit: ESA\/BepiColombo\/MTM<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Working with a reduced staff due to coronavirus-related restrictions, European Space Agency flight controllers monitored the BepiColombo spacecraft during a flyby of Earth on Friday, a maneuver that used our planet\u2019s gravity to steer the mission on a course toward Mercury.<\/p>\n

BepiColombo sailed by Earth at a distance of around 7,900 miles (12,700 kilometers), about one-third the distance of geostationary communications satellites, at 0425 GMT (12:25 a.m. EDT) on Friday.<\/p>\n

The BepiColombo spacecraft is made up of European and Japanese orbiters that will survey Mercury in tandem. A solar-powered ion propulsion module is accompanying the two science orbiters during the flight to the solar system\u2019s innermost planet.<\/p>\n

Some of BepiColombo\u2019s 16 science instruments were switched on and gathered data on the Earth and the moon during the flyby, providing an opportunity to calibrate sensors before the mission reaches Mercury. Small cameras mounted outside the spacecraft also captured ethereal views of the Earth on BepiColombo\u2019s approach Friday.<\/p>\n

\u201cThese selfies from space are humbling, showing our planet, the common home that we share, in one of the most troubling and uncertain periods many of us have gone through,\u201d said G\u00fcnther Hasinger, ESA\u2019s director of science, in a statement.<\/p>\n

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This graphic illustrates BepiColombo\u2019s Earth encounter. Credit: ESA<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

A reduced team of engineers at the European Space Operations Center in Darmstadt, Germany, monitored the progress of BepiColombo during Friday\u2019s flyby maneuver. Scientists and managers, who would have normally been at the control center, tracked the flyby and analyzed data from their homes due to restrictions on gatherings of people adopted by ESA and government authorities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are scientists who fly spacecraft to explore the solar system and observe the universe in search of our cosmic origins, but before that we are humans, caring for one another and coping with a planetary emergency together,\u201d Hasinger said. \u201cWhen I look at these images, I am reminded of the strength and resilience of humankind, of the challenges we can overcome when we team up, and I wish they bring you the same sense of hope for our future.\u201d<\/p>\n

BepiColombo\u2019s flyby of Earth on Friday completed the first leg of the mission\u2019s seven-year journey before entering orbit around Mercury in December 2025.<\/p>\n

The $1.8 billion mission launched from French Guiana aboard an Ariane 5 rocket in October 2018. BepiColombo\u2019s two orbiters will become the first European and Japanese spacecraft to enter orbit around Mercury, and will become the second mission to ever orbit the solar system\u2019s innermost planet, following NASA\u2019s MESSENGER spacecraft.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince it is very hard to go to Mercury, it\u2019s quite a long tour to make,\u201d said Johannes Benkhoff, ESA\u2019s project scientist for the BepiColombo mission. \u201cIt\u2019s a seven-year cruise which we have to go through, so we need the help of planetary flybys.\u201d<\/p>\n

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A sequence of images captured by one of the selfie cameras on BepiColombo as the spacecraft closed in on Earth. Credit: ESA\/BepiColombo\/MTM<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

During each flyby, BepiColombo will use gravity to slow down and reshape its orbit. Without the gravity assist maneuvers, BepiColombo would have had to launch on a much more powerful rocket.<\/p>\n

BepiColombo executed Friday\u2019s flyby sequence according to plan, according to Elsa Montagnon, ESA\u2019s BepiColombo spacecraft operations manager. The spacecraft required no thruster firings during the pre-targeted flyby.<\/p>\n

Shortly after its closest approach to Earth, BepiColombo passed through Earth\u2019s shadow for 34 minutes.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis eclipse phase was the most delicate part of the flyby, with the spacecraft passing through the shadow of our planet and not receiving any direct sunlight for the first time after launch,\u201d Montagnon said in a statement.<\/p>\n

ESA said the spacecraft\u2019s batteries were fully charged to prepare for the eclipse. Ground teams also ensured all components were warmed up.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is always nerve-wracking to know a spacecraft\u2019s solar panels are not bathed in sunlight. When we saw the solar cells had restarted to generate electrical current, we knew BepiColombo was finally out of Earth\u2019s shadow and ready to proceed on its interplanetary journey,\u201d Montagnon said.<\/p>\n

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Artist\u2019s illustration of the BepiColombo spacecraft flying by Earth. Credit: ESA\/ATG medialab<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWe are all pleased that the flyby went well and that we could operate several scientific instruments, and we are looking forward to receiving and analyzing the data,\u201d Benkhoff said. \u201cThese will also be useful to prepare for the next flyby, when BepiColombo will swing past Venus in October.\u201d<\/p>\n

The encounter with Earth was the first of nine planetary flybys planned during BepiColombo\u2019s journey before it enters orbit around Mercury. The mission\u2019s next flyby is scheduled for Oct. 15, when BepiColombo will make its first encounter with Venus.<\/p>\n

Another Venus flyby is planned in August 2021, followed by six flybys of Mercury before BepiColombo finally enters orbit around the solar system\u2019s innermost planet on Dec. 5, 2025.<\/p>\n

Once at Mercury, the European Mercury Planetary Orbiter and the Japanese Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter will separate to enter their own orbits and perform independent measurements.<\/p>\n

BepiColombo\u2019s European-built science orbiter will map Mercury and study the planet\u2019s geologic history, while the Japanese component of the mission will observe the solar wind\u2019s influence on Mercury.<\/p>\n

Email the author.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Follow Stephen Clark on Twitter: @StephenClark1.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A sequence of images captured by one of the selfie cameras on BepiColombo shortly before the closest approach to Earth. Credit: ESA\/BepiColombo\/MTM Working with a reduced staff due to coronavirus-related restrictions, European Space Agency flight controllers monitored the BepiColombo spacecraft during a flyby of Earth on Friday, a maneuver that used our planet\u2019s gravity to […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[1657,2039,2259,831,377,877,2040,2041],"class_list":["post-12538","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","tag-airbus-defense-and-space","tag-bepicolombo","tag-esoc","tag-european-space-agency","tag-japan","tag-jaxa","tag-mercury","tag-mercury-magnetospheric-orbiter"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12538"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12538"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12538\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12538"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12538"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12538"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}