The European Space Agency has published an image taken by the BepiColombo spacecraft. The image shows the South Pole of Mercury.
The photo was taken on September 4. On that day, BepiColombo once again took advantage of Mercury’s gravity. The apparatus flew at a distance of only 165 km from the surface of the first planet of the Solar System. The maneuver made it possible to reduce the orbital velocity of BepiColombo. This is necessary for the spacecraft to be able to enter a permanent orbit around Mercury in the future.
During its visit to Mercury, BepiColombo took a number of photos using its “selfies” cameras. They are capable of making black and white images with a resolution of 1024 by 1024 pixels. The main task of the selfie cameras was to monitor the correct deployment of the various BepiColombo components. But later the mission engineers found another use for them in the form of taking photos of Mercury.
The image was taken 23 minutes after BepiColombo passed the point of minimum approach. At that moment, it was at a distance of 3,500 km from Mercury. In the footage, you can see numerous craters covering the planet’s surface, which were formed as a result of billions of years of bombardment by asteroids and comets. In the upper right part of the BepiColombo image is Mercury’s South Pole. The bottoms of its deepest craters are never illuminated by the Sun, which is why deposits of water ice exist there.
ESA is expected to release new images taken during the Mercury flyby soon. BepiColombo will next visit the planet in December 2024 and then in January 2025. These maneuvers will ensure its entry into a permanent orbit around Mercury in November 2026.
Recall that the mission leadership recently had to adjust the BepiColombo flight program. Originally, it was supposed to enter orbit around Mercury in December 2025. But due to engine problems, the arrival of the spacecraft will be delayed by 11 months.
