Artwork unveiled on exoplanet satellite

August 28, 2018

European Space Agency

Artist's impression of Cheops, ESA's Characterising Exoplanet Satellite, in orbit above Earth. In this view the satellite's telescope cover is open. Credit: ESA / ATG medialab

Two plaques etched with thousands of miniaturised drawings made by children have been unveiled in a dedicated ceremony held today in Switzerland.

Three years ago, thousands of children were inspired by the study of planets beyond our Solar System and translated their imagination into beautiful drawings, which feature a variety of planets and other cosmic settings. Out of the many excellent entries, over 2700 were selected to fly on ESA's Characterising Exoplanet Satellite, Cheops.

Cheops will make high-precision measurements of stars, monitoring the small changes in brightness due to the transit of a planet across the star's disc, in order to determine the planet's size. Combined with known information about the planet's mass, Cheops will enable the density of the planet to be calculated, and as such determine if it is a rocky, icy, or even a water-world for example – a first step to characterise exoplanets.

"Cheops is ESA's first small-class science mission and its task is big. The first step characterisation of the Earth-to-Neptune size planets that Cheops will target is an essential step to piecing together what these planets are made of, and towards the long-term search for habitable worlds beyond our own Solar System,"says Jan Wörner, ESA Director General.

Cheops plaques unveiled. Credit: European Space Agency

"This unique satellite, the product of European collaboration, has already inspired the young generation, seen in the drawings engraved on the plaques unveiled today as Cheops begins its final stages of preparations before moving to the launch site."

While the satellite was being assembled earlier this year, a team at the Bern University of Applied Sciences in Burgdorf, Switzerland miniaturized the drawings and engraved them onto two titanium plates. Each plaque measures nearly 18 cm across and 24 cm high.

The spacecraft has recently completed a series of tests at RUAG Space in Zurich, Switzerland, and today was presented to media and invited guests with the two plaques now attached.

Cheops plaques. Credit: G. Bucher – Bern University of Applied Sciences

Cheops will soon travel to ESA's technical centre in the Netherlands where the satellite will undergo acoustic and radio-frequency compatibility tests during September, concluding the environmental test campaign. The spacecraft will then return to Airbus Defence and Space, Spain for final tests before shipment to Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.

The satellite, which is implemented as a partnership between ESA and Switzerland, is on track to complete all planned test activities by the end of the year.

Once in Earth orbit Cheops will begin to characterise some of the many extrasolar worlds already discovered, many of which are similar to those depicted in the inspired artwork that will fly into space with this exciting mission.

Provided by European Space Agency </s> The European Space Agency (ESA) has successfully launched its newest satellite into orbit from Europe's Space Port in Kourou, French Guiana.

It is the second satellite launched to join a constellation that forms the European Data Relay System (EDRS), which enables users to observe the Earth almost in real-time, helping to accelerate response times in emergencies.

It will take up position above Europe's low-Earth orbiting observation satellites, enabling the overall constellation to maintain an almost constant connection. Previously, these low orbiting satellites could only transmit information when in direct line-of-sight with their ground stations, which could lead to delays of up to 90 minutes in the transfer of images.

However, the new EDRS satellites can beam information back to Earth in almost real-time, which could prove pivotal during disaster recovery and extreme weather events.

The latest satellite was launched by the Ariane 5 heavy launcher rocket. The Ariane-generation spacecraft has long been the workhorse for Europe in the global space race, launching missions for over 30 years.

The ESA, which was created in 1975, has 22 Member States: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Slovenia is an Associate Member.

The organisation develops the launchers, spacecraft and ground facilities needed for Europe's participation in global space activities. It is working in particular with the EU on implementing the Galileo and Copernicus programmes as well as with Eumetsat for the development of meteorological missions. </s> This is the first European mission to the solar system's innermost planet, and the first expedition to leave for Mercury in 14 years.

For the first time in more than 14 years, a spacecraft is headed toward Mercury — the smallest and innermost planet of our solar system. Known as BepiColombo, the spacecraft’s mission is to unravel the secrets of this enigmatic planet and to find out all that it can about Mercury’s atmosphere, magnetic field, and geology.

As the Inquisitr previously reported, the BepiColombo mission represents a collaboration between the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) — with both space agencies sending in their own probe to investigate the planet closest to the sun.

“BepiColombo is the first European mission to Mercury, the smallest and least explored planet in the inner solar system. It is the first Mercury mission to send two science orbiters to make complementary measurements of the planet’s dynamic environment at the same time,” explained ESA officials.

While ESA will be deploying the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO), JAXA is providing the Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MMO) — which this summer was given the name “Mio,” which translates as “waterway” or “fairway.”

“It is a fitting name denoting how far the MMO mission has come, navigating its course past important research and development milestones. It also carries the connotation of wishing the spacecraft a safe journey,” JAXA announced in June.

The two orbiters will be packed inside a transport module that launches tonight from Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana.

“The joint ESA and JAXA BepiColombo mission is ready for liftoff at the start of a journey to discover more about planetary oddball Mercury,” ESA tweeted earlier today.

The module will blast off into space atop an Arianespace Ariane 5 rocket, which is scheduled to soar to the skies at 9:45 p.m. EDT, notes Space. The BepiColombo module is slated to be deployed about 26 minutes after launch, and is expected to get in touch with mission control soon after that.

To watch the spacecraft fly off to Mercury, tune in to the ESA website and follow the live coverage starting from 9:15 p.m. EDT.

“Walk with us to the launchpad!” the mission’s team tweeted a few hours ago.

Should anything arise to hinder tonight’s launch, liftoff will be pushed back by 24 hours. The mission has a very wide launch window, which lasts until November 29.

The spacecraft will be spending the next seven years flying in the direction of the sun — similar to NASA’s Parker Solar Probe. Just like the U.S. probe, BepiColombo will also swing by Venus for gravity-assist maneuvers — and venture as close as possible to Mercury.

“On its 7.2 year journey to the innermost planet, BepiColombo will fly by Earth once, Venus twice and Mercury six times before entering into orbit,” ESA officials detailed in a news release.

According to The Conversation, the BepiColombo spacecraft is named in memory of Giuseppe (Bepi) Colombo, an Italian mathematician and engineer who first proposed gravity-assist flybys for spacecraft.

This is only the third spacecraft to journey to Mercury, after NASA’s Messenger and Mariner 10 missions set out to map the planet in August 2004 and in November 1973, respectively.

While Messenger orbited Mercury between 2011 and 2015, Mariner 10 performed three flybys of the planet in 1974 and 1975 — and was the first to discover the planet’s thin atmosphere and magnetic field. </s> Ariel, the Atmospheric Remote-sensing Infrared Exoplanet Large-survey mission, was selected by ESA as part of its Cosmic Vision plan. The mission addresses one of the key themes of Cosmic Vision: What are the conditions for planet formation and the emergence of life?

Related Post:NigComSat-2 and -3 framework agreement signedGomSpace, AISTECH sign delivery agreement for 100 nanosatellitesOrbital begins production of 81 satellites for Iridium NEXTSSTL delivers 22nd Galileo FOC payloadRussia may sell rocket engines to ChinaSENER and ESA reach an agreement for Proba 3 missionRUAG Space delivers Mars rover camera mastBall Aerospace completes integration milestone for GPIMSovrn </s> The BepiColumbo spacecraft, a joint European-Japanese mission to Mercury, rocketed away from Earth to begin its seven-year trek to the innermost planet.

The BepiColombo spacecraft launched October 19th, at 9:45:28 p.m. EDT, atop an Ariane 5 rocket from an equatorial launch site in Kourou, French Guiana, beginning a seven-year journey to Mercury. The voyage began perfectly, atop towering pillars of flame that lit up the early morning sky and remained visible until the side boosters burned out 2 minutes later, leaving the steady light of the main rocket stage visible as a greenish point in the sky.

BepiColombo’s journey will return it to Earth, past Venus twice, and take it by Mercury six times before finally settling in to orbit on December 5th, 2025. The mission is a combined effort of the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA).

Getting to Mercury is difficult — so difficult that fewer spacecraft have visited Mercury than have visited Saturn. NASA has sent two spacecraft: Mariner 10, which completed three flybys (all over the same hemisphere) in 1974 and 1975, and Messenger, which accomplished its orbital mission from 2011 to 2015.

Messenger was one of NASA’s low-cost Discovery missions. It accomplished a lot with its diminutive payload, producing a global photo map as well as more detailed maps of topography and composition in the northern hemisphere. (The spacecraft’s elliptical orbit took it too far from the southern hemisphere for detailed mapping.) Messenger made discoveries about Mercury’s magnetic field and the tenuous cloud of atoms that fly in space around the planet, confirmed the presence of ice at the poles, and identified places with relatively recent geologic activity. But it left us with more new questions than it answered old ones — as any good survey mission should do.

How can the terrestrial planet with the biggest iron core have so little iron in its crust? Why is its core so big? How can its crust have so much sulfur when it’s the closest planet to the Sun? Why is its magnetic field shifted to the north of the planet’s center? Why do some of Mercury’s craters have dark rays, and others bright? What process formed the bizarre Swiss-cheese features called “hollows”?

Two Spacecraft in One

BepiColombo will bring flagship-class science to Mercury to answer questions both old and new. It comprises two science spacecraft. One, the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO), was built by ESA and will operate in a nearly circular orbit close to the planet. The other, Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MMO), was built by JAXA and will fly in a much more elliptical orbit, far from the planet. The two will always be in the same orbit plane, making it easy to do simultaneous observations of the behavior of the magnetic field and particles in different locations near Mercury.

BepiColombo’s science package recapitulates Messenger’s but with sharper and broader vision and the advantage of two spacecraft. Both probes carry magnetometers, to study how Mercury’s internally generated magnetic field responds to buffeting from the active Sun. Both carry instruments to study the planet’s exosphere — the neutral atoms and ions knocked off Mercury’s surface by incoming radiation. MMO also has a dust counter, something Messenger didn’t have.

MPO has cameras and spectrometers to take photos and compositional measurements of the surface. From its nearly circular orbit, MPO will get much closer to Mercury’s surface and obtain much sharper images than Messenger could, placing its observations in context with the benefit of Messenger’s map. MPO will try to understand the composition of Mercury’s crust and the nature of its volcanic activity, and will search for evidence of the timing of Mercury’s shrinking along near-surface faults. Messenger hinted at small-scale faults on which shrinking could be occurring today; MPO will try to determine if the innermost planet is still active. Scientists are particularly interested in seeing Mercury’s south pole up close and in detail for the first time, to find out whether it has reservoirs of ices and organic-rich materials, as the north pole does.

It’s not easy to get to Mercury. A spacecraft has to shed a huge quantity of angular momentum to get close to the Sun and settle into orbit around the small planet. BepiColombo will be getting a ride from a third spacecraft built by ESA, the Mercury Transfer Module (MTM). MTM will use solar-electric propulsion, its huge solar panels powering ion thrusters that will continuously fire for most of the journey. Shortly before arriving at Mercury, BepiColombo will drop the MTM, thus avoiding the requirement of slowing down into Mercury orbit with all that extra mass.

BepiColombo has a long way to go, but it’s accomplished the most dangerous part of its mission — the launch. Mercury Orbit Insertion in December 2025 should be a piece of cake by comparison. By the time the spacecraft completes its sixth flyby of Mercury in January of that year, it will be traveling slow enough to be captured naturally, by Mercury’s own gravity, the seventh time the planet and spacecraft meet.

Until then, enjoy this replay of the launch (which starts 38 minutes into the clip)! </s> European and Japanese space agencies said an Ariane 5 rocket successfully lifted a spacecraft carrying two probes into orbit Saturday for a joint mission to Mercury, the closest planet to the sun.The European Space Agency and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency said the unmanned BepiColombo spacecraft successfully separated and was sent into orbit from French Guiana as planned to begin a seven-year journey to Mercury.They said the spacecraft, named after Italian scientist Giuseppe "Bepi" Colombo, was in the right orbit and has sent the first signal after the liftoff.ESA says the 1.3 billion-euro (USD 1.5 billion) mission is one of the most challenging in its history.Mercury's extreme temperatures, the intense gravity pull of the sun and blistering solar radiation make for hellish conditions.The BepiColombo spacecraft will have to follow an elliptical path that involves a fly-by of Earth, two of Venus and six of Mercury itself so it can slow down before arriving at its destination in December 2025.When it arrives, BepiColombo will release two probes — Bepi and Mio — that will independently investigate the surface and magnetic field of Mercury.The probes are designed to cope with temperatures varying from 430 degrees Celsius (806 F) on the side facing the sun, and -180 degrees Celsius (-292 F) in Mercury's shadow.The ESA-developed Bepi will operate in Mercury's inner orbit, and JAXA's Mio will be in the outer orbit to gather data that would reveal the internal structure of the planet, its surface and geological evolution.Scientists hope to build on the insights gained by NASA 's Messenger probe, which ended its mission in 2015 after a four-year orbit of Mercury. The only other spacecraft to visit Mercury was NASA's Mariner 10 that flew past the planet in the mid-1970s.Mercury, which is only slightly larger than Earth's moon, has a massive iron core about which little is known. Researchers are also hoping to learn more about the formation of the solar system from the data gathered by the BepiColombo mission."Beyond completing the challenging journey, this mission will return a huge bounty of science," said Jan Wörner, ESA Director General, in a statement.JAXA President Hiroshi Yamakawa, who earlier managed the project, said, "We have high expectations that the ensuing detailed observations of Mercury will help us better understand the environment of the planet, and ultimately, the origin of the Solar System including that of Earth."It is the second recent cooperation between the Europeans and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. JAXA's Hayabusa2 probe dropped a German-French rover on the asteroid Ryugu earlier this month.
The European Space Agency (ESA) unveils two titanium plaques etched with artwork, which will be part of the outside of the CHEOPS exoplanet-characterization satellite during its orbit around Earth.