Hello everyone,
You are probably wondering "finally Gavin! A space-themed post on a space website!". Yes, I have been under performing when it comes to posting space-themed stories on my website. That is why I am excited to talk about a mission that is going to take trip to visit our smallest planet and closest to the Sun, Mercury. BepiColombo is an international mission that launched two spacecrafts together to Mercury in 2018 to orbit and study the planet from unique vantage points. This mission is a collaboration mission between the European Space Agency (ESA) and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA). Each space agency is providing one of the space crafts. ESA is providing the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) and JAXA the Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MMO). The MPO will focus on studying the Mercury's surface and interior, while MMO will study the magnetic field.
The spacecraft will perform its first flyby of Mercury by 2021. Several flyby's will be performed before the spacecraft enters Mercury's orbit by December 2025. The lifetime for this spacecraft is only one year once it enters Mercury's orbit. Despite its short life, a substantial amount of data will be collected since there will be twelve instruments total (instruments on both orbiters) studying the planets surface, interior, exosphere, magnetosphere, and solar radiation interacting with the planet.
Bepicolombo is the third mission that will visit the planet Mercury. Can you believe it! Only three missions have visited Mercury. The first mission was Mariner 10 that performed three flyby's of Mercury from 1974-1975 and the second was MESSENGER that entered Mercury's orbit in 2011 and remained their until April 30th, 2015. Since then no other missions went to Mercury. Now, a lot of this has to do with space agency administrations putting focus on other planetary bodies that are closer to home and easier to reach via spacecraft, and the curiosity of humanity wanting to study the moons of our gas giants Jupiter and Saturn. The main reason for the lack of missions to Mercury is because the innermost parts of the solar system are hard to reach and guarantee orbiter and instrument safety. The extreme temperature from the Sun and the complex orbit of Mercury make it difficult to plan orbit paths for spacecrafts and to design instruments and protection measures that will prevent damage from solar radiation and heat.
Science Instruments
The instruments on each spacecraft are designed to analyze different chemical and physical properties of Mercury's surface and atmosphere, and the strength of the planet's magnetic field.
Credit: ESA
Below are the instruments on the MPO:
BepiColombo Laser Altimeter (BELA) - characterize and measure the topography and surface roughness of Mercury.
Italian Spring Accelerometer (ISA) - three-axis high sensitivity accelerometer: test of Einstein's theory of General Relativity.
Mercury Magnetometer (MPO-MAG) - dual digital fluxgate magnetometer: measure DC and low frequency perturbations of the magnetic field.
Mercury Radiometer and Thermal Infrared Spectrometer (MERTIS) - detailed information about the mineralogy of Mercury's surface. Will measure the spectral emittance at different locations on the surface. Mercury's surface is probably the oldest in our solar system.
Mercury Gamma-Ray and Neutron Spectrometer (MGNS) - determine the elemental composition of Mercury's surface.
Mercury Imaging X-ray Spectrometer (MIXS) - this instrument has three aims: (1) produce global elemental abundance maps of rock forming elements, (2) perform high spatial resolution mapping of the rock forming elements, and (3) confirm the auroral zone where energetic particles interact with the surface.
Mercury Orbiter Radio-Science Experiment (MORE) - determine the gravity field and the size and physical state of the core.
Probing of Hermean Exosphere by Ultraviolet Spectroscopy (PHEBUS) - characterize the composition, structure and dynamics of Mercury's exosphere by measuring UV emissions.
Search for Exospheric Refilling and Emitted Natural Abundances (SERENA) - study the processes between the exosphere and magnetosphere using neutral and ionized particles.
Spectrometer and Imagers for MPO BepiColombo Integrated Observatory System (SIMBIO-SYS) - imaging and spectroscopic investigation of the Hermean surface. Examine surface geology, volcanism, global tectonics, surface age, surface composition, weathering, rock forming minerals and geophysics.
Solar Intensity X-Ray and Particles Spectrometer (SIXS) - measure X-rays and particles of solar origin at the position of BepiColombo.
For more information about the instrument specifications and science goals, head to the BepiColombo ESA website.
Below are the instruments on the MMO:
Credit: Akihiro Ikeshita/JAXA
Mercury Dust Monitor (MDM) - explore the dust environment at Mercury to see how it compares to other dust environments in our solar system.
MMO Magnetometer (MMO/MGF) - Same measurements as the MPO-MAG.
Mercury Plasma/Particle Experiment (MPPE) - Consisting of seven sensors, this instrument will measure the structure, dynamics and physical processes in Mercury's magnetosphere, the interaction between surface, exosphere and magnetosphere, and collision-less shock physics in the inner heliosphere.
Mercury Sodium Atmosphere Spectral Imager (MSASI) - the instrument is pronounced as 'musashi': a spectrometer devoted to the measurement of a narrow sodium D2 emission line against the bright surface of Mercury.
Plasma Wave Investigation (PWI) - consists of two electric field sensors, two magnetic field sensors and three receivers. The PWI instrument will be used to study the activities of electric fields, plasma waves, and radio waves in the Hermean plasma environments.
Credit: ESA
I honestly cannot wait until BepiColombo reaches Mercury in 2021. A few years of flybys and then a year of orbiting the planet will provide us with a plethora of information about our solar system's smallest planet :D