BepiColombo Sheds New Light on Mercury's Mysteries
BepiColombo, a joint mission by ESA and JAXA, conducted its fifth flyby of Mercury on December 1, 2024, becoming the first spacecraft to capture mid-infrared images of the planet. These images, taken by the MERTIS instrument, reveal variations in temperature and composition across Mercury's surface, offering new insights into its mineralogy. The mission, which aims to enter Mercury's orbit in 2026, is expected to provide a detailed global map of the planet's surface minerals, enhancing our understanding of its unique characteristics.