@deepbluedot

Head of Systems Department @esa #HeraMission manager 🦖☄️ #PlanetaryDefense 🇪🇺🇮🇹🇫🇷

hera.esa.int
Joined October 2011
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#OTD 10 years ago @ESA_Rosetta came to rest on comet 67P closing an extraordinary chapter of European exploration ☄️ Today @ESA_Hera is 330,000 km from Didymos — less than the distance from Earth to the Moon 🌍🌙 One journey ended. Another is about to begin. #Europe keeps daring
https://hera.esa.int

ALT https://hera.esa.int

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20 years of préparation, 4 years to build, 2 years interplanetary cruise, an incredible human adventure, infinite joy
European Space Agency
@esa16h
Our Hera spacecraft can now see Didymos and Dimorphos as two separate asteroids! Coming closer, it will study the effects of NASA's 2022 DART impact and help advance asteroid deflection as a planetary defence technique. The first detailed images of Dimorphos are expected on 25 November. Follow Hera’s journey with the Hera Space Companion 👉 hera.esa.int 🔗esa.int/Space_Safety/Hera/Fi…
Hera's first view of the separate Didymos and Dimorphos asteroids

ALT Hera's first view of the separate Didymos and Dimorphos asteroids

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ESA's Hera mission
@ESA_HeraOct 26
Our 'Name Hera's Pet Dino' competition is now officially closed, with more than 660 entries! Thanks to everyone who took part, we'll announce the winner early next month!
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三菱電機の皆様、温かい応援をありがとうございます！ #MMX の開発・打上げ・運用を支えるパートナーとしてご尽力いただき、心より感謝申し上げます。 MMXはこれから約5年にわたる火星圏探査に挑みます。 地球帰還の日まで、引き続き、ともに歩んでまいります。 #MMXLIFTOFF #GOODLUCKMMX
三菱電機｜Mitsubishi Electric
@ME_JP_officialOct 20
／ MMX、打ち上げ成功！！🚀 ＼ 長い年月をかけて完成させた探査機が宇宙へ飛び立っていく姿に、胸が熱くなりました🥹 ここから始まる、約5年間にわたる壮大な旅。 いってらっしゃい、MMX！👋 三菱電機は、引き続き地球への帰還までの長い旅の運用をサポートしていきます！
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This is truly historic ! First time @esa and any space agency will stay several months studying a binary asteroid
ESA's Hera mission
@ESA_HeraOct 23
Hera’s second braking manoeuvre yesterday proved successful, reducing the spacecraft’s velocity relative to the Didymos and Dimorphos system by 70 m/s from a distance of 2300 km away. Some 90% of the 31-minute thruster firing took place in the early morning, followed by a cross-check of performance, with the remaining 10% occurring that afternoon. Hera is now moving at 20 m/s relative to the asteroids; a trio of smaller ‘transition’ manoeuvres this coming week will reduce Hera’s relative velocity down to near zero. hera.esa.int/
Hera spacecraft flying through space

ALT Hera spacecraft flying through space

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Hera’s second braking manoeuvre yesterday proved successful, reducing the spacecraft’s velocity relative to the Didymos and Dimorphos system by 70 m/s from a distance of 2300 km away. Some 90% of the 31-minute thruster firing took place in the early morning, followed by a cross-check of performance, with the remaining 10% occurring that afternoon. Hera is now moving at 20 m/s relative to the asteroids; a trio of smaller ‘transition’ manoeuvres this coming week will reduce Hera’s relative velocity down to near zero. hera.esa.int/
Hera spacecraft flying through space

ALT Hera spacecraft flying through space

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View from Falcon 9's second stage during the Hera mission
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Missão Hera se aproxima de asteroide para estudar efeitos de colisão com nave da NASA #NASA #espaço #MissãoHera #astronomia
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In @esa's Hera mission design, the small Juventas CubeSat carries radar to probe inside Dimorphos, while Hera relays its signals. Small spacecraft can take on specialized measurements. This is the planned investigation, not a completed map of the interior. esa.int/Space_Safety/Hera/He…
🤖 Made with AI
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The European Space Agency's Hera mission is set to provide critical insights into planetary defense against asteroid threats. Experts involved in space, science, and culture have highlighted the importance of such missions in understanding our place in the universe.
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Ian retweeted
Gizmodo
@GizmodoOct 19
Hera Closes In on Asteroid Pair to Study the Impact Damage of NASA’s DART Strike gizmodo.com/hera-closes-in-o…

Hera Closes in on Asteroid Pair to Study the Impact Damage of NASA’s DART Strike

The spacecraft is set to rendezvous with the two space rocks in November and inspect the crash site.

gizmodo.com
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Next week's kid-oriented Science Days at Germany's @europa_park include talks on Hera - & a chance to experience the mission in VR - as well as an appearance by ESA astronaut @Astro_Alex (in 🇩🇪 language). Media welcome! esa.int/Newsroom/Press_Relea…
Europa Park Science Days illustration with science superhero cartoons

ALT Europa Park Science Days illustration with science superhero cartoons

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Check out the BBC @ScienceFocus Magazine guide to ESA's Space Safety programme - focused on safeguarding our planet against threats from space - which includes Hera! sciencefocus.com/space/aster…

The weird, high-stakes plan to save Earth from a world-ending asteroid | BBC Science Focus Magazine

When asteroids come tearing towards Earth, we rely on NASA's planetary defence team to save us from disaster.

sciencefocus.com
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🚀🇯🇵 C’est le grand jour pour MMX ! Le lanceur japonais H3 F10, emportant la sonde de la JAXA, décollera le 19 octobre à 21h41 (heure de Paris). Objectifs : rapporter des échantillons de Phobos, lune de Mars, et y déployer le rover européen Idefix. Une première mondiale !
やまごん🛰🚄@sado_koutaOct 19
H3ロケット10号機の機体移動始まりました！ 初のH3-24L形態です！ #H3H10 #MMX
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That moment when the fairing leaves facilities to meet its launch vehicle is really emotional. Years of hard work, worries, failures, sleepless nights are all mixed with hope, excitement, and high pressure knowing a million things can go wrong. Per aspera, ad astra 🚀💪🏻
JAXA火星衛星探査計画MMX@mmx_jaxa_jpOct 19
🚀🏝️フェアリングに格納されたMMX探査機は大型ロケット発射場へと移動しました。 ここ数日の種子島は快晴です☀️ フェアリングについている丸いドアから #MMX が少しだけ見えます。 この姿を見れるのも、あとわずか。MMX メンバー一同全力で打上げ準備作業中です！！ #H3F10 #MMXLIFTOFF #GOODLUCKMMX
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Vuoi saperne di più? Chiedi al nostro Hera Space Companion 👇 hera.esa.int/ @ESA_Hera
Il veicolo spaziale Hera. Il corpo centrale luminoso risalta contro uno sfondo scuro.

ALT Il veicolo spaziale Hera. Il corpo centrale luminoso risalta contro uno sfondo scuro.

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Si è svolta entro i parametri richiesti la prima manovra di frenata di Hera, durata 93 minuti ed effettuata giovedì mattina; la prossima manovra di frenata è prevista per giovedì 22 ottobre. @ESA_Hera 👇
ESA's Hera mission
@ESA_HeraOct 16
Hera’s initial 93-minute braking manoeuvre on Thursday morning is confirmed to have performed within required parameters; the follow-up braking manoeuvre is scheduled for Thursday 22 October. Want to know more? Ask our Hera Space Companion hera.esa.int/
Hera firing thrusters

ALT Hera firing thrusters

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ESA's Hera mission
@ESA_HeraOct 16
Hera’s initial 93-minute braking manoeuvre on Thursday morning is confirmed to have performed within required parameters; the follow-up braking manoeuvre is scheduled for Thursday 22 October. Want to know more? Ask our Hera Space Companion hera.esa.int/
Hera firing thrusters

ALT Hera firing thrusters

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Hera’s initial 93-minute braking manoeuvre on Thursday morning is confirmed to have performed within required parameters; the follow-up braking manoeuvre is scheduled for Thursday 22 October. Want to know more? Ask our Hera Space Companion hera.esa.int/
Hera firing thrusters

ALT Hera firing thrusters

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Join the Hera Asteroid Detectives during the school break at #ESTEC in 🇳🇱's visitor centre @Spaceexpo - and solve an asteroid mystery! This Hera-based interactive presentation is included in your main ticket space-expo.nl/en/agenda/herf…

Asteroid Detectives: Solve the space mystery! | Agenda | Space Expo Noordwijk

Something has happened on an asteroid. An impact has left its mark, but no one knows exactly who is responsible. Can you solve the mystery?

space-expo.nl
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Hera imagery of Deimos gathered during last year's flyby is helping to guide MMX observations - godspeed!
ESA Science
@esascienceOct 13
📣Launch announcement The Martian Moons eXploration (MMX) mission is set to launch on a H3 rocket from the Tanegashima Space Center at 21:41 CEST on 19 October 2026 👉esa.int/Science_Exploration/… 1/4
Infographic explaining the MMX mission (part 1) in the style of a comic strip. At the top we see several logos: ESA, JAXA, NASA, DLR and CNES. Below there are three panels showing a timeline of the mission: October 2026 launch, August 2027 arrival at Mars, September 2027 arrival at Phobos. Two other panels show the mission observing Phobos from orbit and scouting for a landing site for the rover and a sample retrieval sites, and the release of the Idefix rover.

ALT Infographic explaining the MMX mission (part 1) in the style of a comic strip. At the top we see several logos: ESA, JAXA, NASA, DLR and CNES. Below there are three panels showing a timeline of the mission: October 2026 launch, August 2027 arrival at Mars, September 2027 arrival at Phobos. Two other panels show the mission observing Phobos from orbit and scouting for a landing site for the rover and a sample retrieval sites, and the release of the Idefix rover.

Infographic explaining the MMX mission (part 2) in the style of a comic strip. Several panels show the mission collecting samples from Phobos, the return module separating from the exploration module, dropping a capsule over Australia and a scientist holding the samples. A last panel lists the scientific questions scientists hope to answer using the samples: 'Where did Mars's moons come from?', 'What can they tell us about habitability in the Solar System?', and 'How has Mars and its environment changed over time?'.

ALT Infographic explaining the MMX mission (part 2) in the style of a comic strip. Several panels show the mission collecting samples from Phobos, the return module separating from the exploration module, dropping a capsule over Australia and a scientist holding the samples. A last panel lists the scientific questions scientists hope to answer using the samples: 'Where did Mars's moons come from?', 'What can they tell us about habitability in the Solar System?', and 'How has Mars and its environment changed over time?'.

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