Testing equipment on an interstellar mission is one of the operators' first tasks once the spacecraft has successfully launched. In some cases, these tests reveal the future problems the mission will face, such as what happened to NASA's Lucy mission a few years ago. However, in some cases the mission opens up perspectives that we might never have seen before, such as Hera, ESA's mission to Dimorphos. This asteroid was successfully deflected during NASA's DART test in 2022.
Hera was successfully launched on October 7th and has a range of instruments designed to observe the asteroids at different wavelengths. Some instruments were aimed at the Earth and the Moon from a distance of about one million kilometers as part of the near-Earth commissioning phase of the mission. The resulting images showcase the spacecraft's capabilities and provide a new perspective on our “patio globe,” as Carl Sagan once put it, and our much more sterile neighbors.
First we have an image from the Asteroid Framing Camera or AFC. Technically speaking, this monochrome 1020×1020 image consists of two cameras (for redundancy reasons, as is the case with so many space missions) and is the clearest of the three released by ESA as part of a press release. It gives an idea of the extent of the distance between the Earth and the Moon, which can be difficult to estimate on the planet's surface.
Image of the Earth (left) and the moon from Heras AFC.
Credit – ESA
Next comes the Thermal Infrared Imager or TIRI. This one was taken a little closer, at a distance of 1.4 million kilometers (about three times the distance from Earth to the Moon itself). TIRI is designed to capture infrared wavelengths of light – which we normally think of as heat. Observing Dimorphos over time will allow it to understand the “thermal inertia” of certain regions, which scientists can use to detect some key physical properties of the asteroid. Although it's not the most exciting space image ever captured, the successful operation of this delicate instrument is critical to the mission.
Image of the Earth (center) and the moon from Heras TIRI.
Credit – ESA
Finally, there's Hyperscout H. It's also designed to capture dimorphos at wavelengths that humans can't visibly see – in this case, wavelengths from 650 nm to 950 nm, which is considered “near infrared” compared to the “mid infrared.” . TIRI's infrared capabilities. Additionally, this imager has its own false color representation that displays “shorter” wavelengths closer to our visible spectrum as blue tones, while “red tones” represent wavelengths further from visible light.
Image of the Earth (bottom left) and the moon from Heras Hyperscout H-Imager.
Credit – ESA
The Earth and the Moon have most likely been imaged at these wavelengths millions of times, so it is unlikely that any scientific knowledge can be derived from these images. Nevertheless, these images are invaluable as a proof of concept for how the systems operate. The three cameras form some of the essential parts of Hera's “asteroid deck,” which houses most of the spacecraft's other instruments, including two CubeSat deployment devices, a laser rangefinder and antennas for in-space communications with Earth. Many of these various instruments will have to wait until “showtime,” when the spacecraft reaches the binary asteroid system in December 2026. Hopefully we will also get many more pictures of the three systems covered here.
Learn more:
ESA – Hera's first images offer a farewell look at the Earth and the Moon
UT – Hera probe sets off to study the consequences of the DART asteroid impact
UT – ESA's Hera mission brings two cubesats. You will land on Dimorphos
UT – The smallest radar ever launched will study the interior of Dimorphos after hitting DART
Mission statement:
Image of Earth from AFC
Credit – ESA
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