ESA’s Hera Probe Captures Stunning Image of Mars’ Moon Deimos During Flyby
Hera spacecraft captured an extraordinary near-infrared image of Mars’ moon Deimos during a flyby of the Red Planet. This marks the first use of Hera’s science instruments, providing a detailed view of Deimos silhouetted against Mars—a rare perspective of the lesser-known Martian moon.
Check Out These Rare Images of Deimos, One of Mars’ Mysterious Moons
Like our moon, Deimos is tidally locked to Mars, meaning the same side always faces the planet—the only side visible to rovers on the Martian surface. The only way to see Deimos’ far side up close is for a probe like Hera to fly behind it, making such images more of a rarity.
European spacecraft got rare close-up of Mars' lesser-known moon
While the car-sized spacecraft flew around the Mars system, flight controllers on Earth temporarily lost communication with Hera because the signal was blocked. Though the blackout was planned for the maneuver, Ian Carnelli, the European Space Agency's Hera mission manager, said it was deeply emotional.
Mars Gets a Close-Up and a Photo Bomb as Europe’s Hera Mission Swoops Past
The Red Planet and its tiny moon Deimos were recorded at a very near distance as the asteroid-chasing spacecraft completed a flyby on Wednesday.
Hera Asteroid Probe Spots Mysterious Martian Moon During Flyby
The Hera probe has swung around Mars, using the planet’s gravitational pull to fling itself toward its asteroid target. During its brief rendezvous with the Red Planet, Hera caught a glimpse of the less-seen side of Mars’ smaller, tidally-locked moon as it orbited its home planet.
Asteroid probe snaps rare images of Martian moon
For an hour, HERA flew as close as 5,600 kilometers from the Martian surface, at a speed of 33,480 kilometers an hour. It used the opportunity to test some of its scientific instruments, snapping around 600 pictures, including rare ones of Deimos.
En Route to Asteroid Collision, HERA Snaps Rare Images of Martian Moon
On the way to investigate the scene of a historic asteroid collision, a European spacecraft swung by Mars and captured rare images of the red planet's mysterious small moon Deimos, the European Space Agency (ESA) said Thursday.
ESA's Hera probe trains its cameras at Mars' moon Deimos | Space photo of the day March 13, 2025
ESA's Hera spacecraft inaugurated use of its science instruments to image the smaller of the planet's two moons, Deimos.
Hera asteroid mission takes stunning images of Mars’s moon Deimos
A mission to survey the results of a deliberate crash between an asteroid and a NASA spacecraft has taken stunning images of Mars and its moon Deimos
European spacecraft captures rare images of Mars moon Deimos
On the way to investigate the scene of a historic asteroid collision, a European spacecraft swung by Mars and captured rare images of the red planet’s mysterious small moon, Deimos, the European Space Agency said on Thursday.
Probe captures rare images of moon orbiting Mars
The European Space Agency launched Hera in 2024 to test asteroid-deflection techniques in deep space. The agency aims to improve planetary defense measures.
‘A great success story for the Irish space strategy’: Technology designed in Dublin guiding Mars fly-by
Technology designed in Dublin will assist a European Space Agency (ESA) spacecraft called Hera as it navigates a close fly-by ...
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Spacecraft Takes Time to Shoot Mars' More Mysterious Moon as It Heads Deep Into Space
The European Space Agency (ESA) fires up three of the instruments on the Hera spacecraft and takes images of the smaller ...