Bepi retweeted
Our MPO @ESA_Bepi & Mio @JAXA_MMO spacecraft, still attached to each other, swept within ~88 000 km of the planet on 26 October, then moved further away. Today at ~222 000km, it turns back, heading for 21 November orbit insertion.
It's downhill to Mercury all the way from today!
It's downhill to Mercury all the way from today!
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Bepi retweeted
Today's our launch anniversary - 8 years since @ESA_Bepi and @JAXA_MMO roared into space together!
Listen to some of our team members summarize our mission in 3 words... #bepicolombo
Listen to some of our team members summarize our mission in 3 words... #bepicolombo
And as today we're celebrating eight years since @BepiColombo left for Mercury, we've asked the team to describe the mission in three words.
Can you guess which word came up the most?
youtube.com/watch?v=iy5dI1…
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Bepi retweeted
🚨Competition alert 🚨
Craft a #WelcomeToMercury message for MPO and Mio and stand a chance to win a trip to Germany and witness the ESA/JAXA #BepiColombo
mission arrive at Mercury!
The message could be a drawing, song, poem or any other art form. Details 👉esa.int/Science_Explor…
Craft a #WelcomeToMercury message for MPO and Mio and stand a chance to win a trip to Germany and witness the ESA/JAXA #BepiColombo
mission arrive at Mercury!
The message could be a drawing, song, poem or any other art form. Details 👉esa.int/Science_Explor…
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Farewell, robofriend! 🫶
Say hello to the Sun from my side 🥹
Say hello to the Sun from my side 🥹
A happy goodbye is still a goodbye 🥹
Mission accomplished, MTM! 🫡 Thank you for the ride!
Thanks to its solar-powered electric thrusters, MTM carried @esa's Bepi & @JAXA_en 's Mio to Mercury on the power equivalent of 250 ants! 🐜🐜🐜
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🛰️ 〰️〰️
⏳ The countdown is over.
#BepiColombo's Mercury Transfer Module should have now separated from the spacecraft, a key step in the mission's journey towards orbiting #Mercury. 🛰️↔️🚀
Now expecting acquisition of signal confirming separation no earlier than 15:53 CEST.
@ESA ISAS_JAXA_EN
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A pity we can't see you, ground control, but we can hear you 📡
If you're based on Earth, you *can* watch the separation operations live now 👉 youtube.com/watch?v=oC7lQn…
If you're based on Earth, you *can* watch the separation operations live now 👉 youtube.com/watch?v=oC7lQn…
🚨 LIVE NOW! From ESA Mission Control
The GO has been given, the operation is underway, and our livestream has begun. Follow along as #BepiColombo executes the MTM separation sequence and enters the next phase of its journey to #Mercury. ☀️🌑🛰️
Watch here 👉 youtube.com/watch?v=oC7lQn…
@ESA @JAXA_en @BepiColombo @ISAS_JAXA_EN
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I'm ready for separation, ground control! 🫡
(well, as ready as one can be to never see a friend again 🥹)
(well, as ready as one can be to never see a friend again 🥹)
🟢 GO for MTM separation.
The Mission Control Team has the green light to proceed with #BepiColombo's MTM separation. ✅
The spacecraft is configured, the team is ready, and the first milestone of #Mercury arrival is underway. 🛰️
@esa @JAXA_en @BepiColombo @ISAS_JAXA_EN
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The time I eagerly waited for, but also dreaded in a way, has come 🥹
Today, @JAXA_MMO and myself have to say goodbye to dear old friend @ESA_MTM, who's powered us all our journey so far.
This also means we're getting close to Mercury!
Follow along 👉 youtube.com/watch?v=oC7lQn…
Today, @JAXA_MMO and myself have to say goodbye to dear old friend @ESA_MTM, who's powered us all our journey so far.
This also means we're getting close to Mercury!
Follow along 👉 youtube.com/watch?v=oC7lQn…
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😮 The views I get when passing by are just jaw-dropping!
Can't wait to be back at Mercury, this time to stay!
Can't wait to be back at Mercury, this time to stay!
📽️Sit down, relax and enjoy #BepiColombo’s views as it moved gracefully around Mercury on 7-8 January 2025.
🎼🎶Playing in the background is The Hebrides overture by Felix Mendelssohn - can you guess why?
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Thank you, ground support team 🫡
Now let's get ready for the last trip before final arrival at destination.
Until then, here are my latest Mercury postcards, everyone! 👇
Now let's get ready for the last trip before final arrival at destination.
Until then, here are my latest Mercury postcards, everyone! 👇
Our top three images from the sixth Mercury flyby are here! 🌗
See what they reveal about the mysterious planet here 👉 esa.int/Science_Explor… and in 🧵👇
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I have greeted Mercury in passing one last time before we meet again in 2026. 🤗
On 8 January, at 06:59 CET, Bepi, Mio and MTM got as close as 295 km to Mercury’s surface. This sixth flyby is the last time the #BepiColombo trio greet the planet together 👉 esa.int/ESA_Multimedia…
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Ground support, you have mail!
Images and other scientific data from this morning's close approach to Mercury by #bepicolombo are safely on the ground! We'll be sharing images from the closest approach tomorrow.
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Bepi retweeted
Here's an image taken 5.5 hours before closest approach, when #bepicolombo was 44950 km from Mercury's southern hemisphere. The planet is at the bottom of the picture, below two of the spacecraft's booms.
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Hello, Mercury! 👋
Here we go again, one last swingby before I'm here to stay.
Here we go again, one last swingby before I'm here to stay.
BepiColombo is reaching its closest approach to Mercury now during its sixth encounter with the planet. It's 06:58:52 CET, and the spacecraft is 295km from the surface. #bepicolombo
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I'm getting ready for my last flyby of Mercury! One more trip and I'll be home for good 🥹
🛰️🌑We're gearing up for BepiColombo's sixth Mercury flyby, coming up this Wednesday!
ℹ️Closest approach is 295 km at 06:59 CET
We'll investigate Mercury's cold night side, north pole craters, and the vast northern plains
👇esa.int/Science_Explor…
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I saw Mercury in infrared light for the first time last week - the planet's sunlit side looks simply... radiant🥹
Last week, @BepiColombo became the first spacecraft to image planet Mercury in mid-infrared light 🔥
Using @MERTISonBepi, the mission will uncover what Mercury's surface is made of 👇
esa.int/Science_Explor…
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Mercury flyby 5 was a success, can't wait to show you everything we saw!
Yesterday @BepiColombo greeted Mercury from just 37628 km away, using @MERTISonBepi to take the first ever space-based pictures of the planet in mid-infrared wavelengths. We'll reveal what Bepi saw in the coming week! 👇
esa.int/ESA_Multimedia…
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😌Here's a sneak preview of my views of Mercury, taken as I flew towards the planet yesterday
This was the fifth time I flew close to Mercury - only one more flyby to go before I stay near the planet for good!
This was the fifth time I flew close to Mercury - only one more flyby to go before I stay near the planet for good!
Mercury in motion... One of the #BepiColombo selfie-cameras captured Mercury today as the spacecraft rushed by the planet at almost 3 km per second. 🛰️💨
This time-lapse of unprocessed images was captured during 10:26-11:18 UTC today (11:26-12:18 CET), between 53700 and 48000 km ce. 📸
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