The European Space Agency/Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency BepiColombo mission has successfully completed its fourth of six gravity assist flybys at Mercury.

About BepiColombo

BepiColombo is an international mission consisting of two spacecraft riding together to Mercury to orbit and study the planet from unique vantage points.

• The spacecraft were launched on October 20, 2018, aboard an Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana. It is scheduled to begin orbiting Mercury in 2025.
• Objective: To study Mercury’s magnetic field, its composition, the geology of its surface, and its interaction with the solar wind.
• The mission will also investigate the planet’s exosphere and study its geological history.
• It is a joint mission between the  European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japanese counterpart JAXA.
  • ESA’s Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) will study the planet’s surface and interior.
  • JAXA’s Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MIO) will study the planet’s magnetic field.
  • ESA is also responsible for the launcher, the interplanetary cruising engine, and the placement of BepiColombo into Mercury’s orbit.

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Significance

• First-ever image of South Pole: This flyby was particularly notable as it delivered the first-ever image of Mercury’s elusive South Pole.
• Data Collection: The flyby provided scientists with a rare chance to gather important data on Mercury’s magnetic field and exosphere

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