Wednesday, October 28, 2026

2018-10-20 · 8 years ago

BepiColombo — launch

Date in UTC

BepiColombo is a joint mission of the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) to the planet Mercury. The mission comprises two orbiters: the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO), built and operated by ESA, and Mio (Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter, MMO), built and operated by JAXA. Together the satellites will perform a comprehensive study of Mercury, including characterization of its magnetic field, magnetosphere, and both interior and surface structure. During the cruise phase to reach Mercury, the orbiters were in a stacked configuration with two additional components: the Mercury Transfer Module (MTM), which provided power and solar electric propulsion for the cruise, and the Magnetospheric Orbiter Sunshield and Interface (MOSIF), which protects Mio from the harsh solar radiation until it is deployed.

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BepiColombo. Related NASA reference: https://science.nasa.gov/mission/bepicolombo/. Description adapted from Wikipedia contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0; https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).

Category
Launches and Flight Tests
Type
Orbital launch
Subjects
Space transportation
Mission
BepiColombo
Organization
Arianespace, Inc.
Vehicle
Ariane 5ECA
Location
Centre Spatial Guyanais, Kourou, Guyane Francaise
Country
FR
Outcome
Successful

Context and qualifications

Launch code: DS. Source references: Wire; -.

Sources and attribution

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