On the planet closest to the Sun, the Hermes, arrives at 02:34 on Saturday (Greek time) the first joint Euro-Japanese space mission. However, because it moves very fast, it will overtake Mercury, which will slow down the speed of the ship. Other nearby BepiColombo crossings will be needed before it can enter a stable and controlled orbit around the planet by the end of 2025.
During tonight’s first approach, the spacecraft will pass about 200 kilometers from Mercury, which it will photograph, though not with its high-resolution cameras, something that will happen in the coming years. One part of the spacecraft was built by the European Space Agency (ESA) and another by the Japanese Space Agency (JAXA). These two separate parts have been “married” to create a single spacecraft, but will separate when it enters its final orbit in 2025. Then they will each be put on a separate track and will follow different scientific roles, according to the APE-MPE.
The European Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) will have as a priority to map the craters-full surface of the planet (reminiscent of the Moon) and collect data on the structure and composition of its surface, as well as its subsoil. The Japanese Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MM) will study the magnetic field of Mercury and its interaction with the solar “wind”, the mass of charged particles that the Sun launches into space.
The next nearby gravity crossing will take place in June 2022, further slowing down the vessel. New crossings will follow in June 2023, September 2024, December 2024 and January 2025. The vessel is expected to begin full operation of its scientific instruments in 2026.
The new mission hopes that will shed more light on the mysteries of Mercury, like him its oversized iron core, which is estimated to be about 60% of the planet’s mass. The spacecraft is named after the Italian scientist and engineer Giuseppe “Bebi” Colombo (1920-1984), who pioneered the study of Mercury and whose calculations allowed NASA’s Mariner 10 spacecraft to reach the planet in 1974-75. This was followed by NASA’s Messenger mission, which orbited Mercury in 2011-15.
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