Mercury probe BepiColombo to speed past planet in third flyby

 

DARMSTADT – The BepiColombo probe is expected to approach Mercury on Monday for another flyby of the solar system’s innermost planet.

The research probe will draw near at an altitude of some 236 kilometres at 9:34 pm (1934 GMT), the European Space Agency (ESA) told dpa from its control centre in Darmstadt, Germany.

Images of Mercury’s surface are expected to be published on Tuesday. This will be the third of a total of six flybys of the solar system’s smallest planet.

The last approach of Mercury was in June 2022 – at an altitude of 200 kilometres. These flybys are necessary to slow down the probe so that it can ultimately reach its final orbit around Mercury.

BepiColombo was launched in October 2018 for its seven-year journey to Mercury. With two satellites on board, it will study the surface and magnetic field of the planet from December 2025.

The project, which is a joint partnership between the ESA and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), with total costs of some €2 billion ($2.2 billion), is focussed on investigating the origins of the solar system.

The mission is run from the ESA Control Centre in Darmstadt near Frankfurt.