ESA’s Hera mission is due to launch in October this year on a quest to survey the Didymos binary asteroid system and study the results of the first-ever test of asteroid deflection.The spacecraft is currently undergoing its final system tests in the Netherlands in preparation for transport to its launch site in the USA. Meanwhile, in Germany, Hera’s Mission Control Team recently began launch preparations of their own.
The science team behind ESA’s Hera asteroid mission is getting bigger. NASA has selected 12 participating scientists to join Europe’s first planetary defence mission, scheduled to launch this October.The goal of NASA’s Hera Participating Scientist Program is to support scientists at US institutions to participate in the Hera mission and address outstanding questions in planetary defence and near-Earth asteroid science. The participating scientist will become Hera science team members during their five-year tenure with the mission.
Once launched, Hera will begin a two-year cruise phase. An initial deep space manoeuvre in late October 2024 will be followed by a Mars swingby (and Deimos flyby) in March 2025. A second deep space manoeuvre in February 2026 will line Hera up for arrival at the Didymos system. An ‘impulsive rendezvous’ in October 2026 will bring Hera into the vicinity of the asteroid system for orbit insertion.
After a year of testing, ESA’s Hera asteroid mission for planetary defence is about to depart Europe and head towards its launch site in the USA. The Hera team looked on as the crated spacecraft – along with its twin miniature CubeSats and additional equipment – was driven away from ESA’s ESTEC Test Centre in Noordwijk, the Netherlands.
The trio of spacecraft were transported overnight to Cologne airport in Germany, where they will be flown to Cape Canaveral in the USA this evening for launch by Space X Falcon 9 in early October.
Any talk on ESA's side on how the F9 grounding after Crew-9 will affect the launch date?
QuoteAt an ESA briefing this morning, Hera project officials say they are proceeding with plans for an Oct. 7 launch on a Falcon 9, including encapsulating the spacecraft in the fairing tomorrow. Getting daily briefings on investigation and "very happy" with progress so far.QuoteThe Hera project manager, Ian Carnelli, also said they would be happy to be the return-to-flight mission for the Falcon 9, and don't require SpaceX to perform a launch before it.https://x.com/jeff_foust/status/1841459447014531097
At an ESA briefing this morning, Hera project officials say they are proceeding with plans for an Oct. 7 launch on a Falcon 9, including encapsulating the spacecraft in the fairing tomorrow. Getting daily briefings on investigation and "very happy" with progress so far.
The Hera project manager, Ian Carnelli, also said they would be happy to be the return-to-flight mission for the Falcon 9, and don't require SpaceX to perform a launch before it.