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Mark McCaughrean
@markmccaughrean
Before you get too excited about today's #BepiColomboVenusFlyby images, keep in mind that they will have been taken with the engineering cameras designed to confirm hardware deployments, not the main science camera.

Why & what does that mean?

1/
En-route to Mercury, @bepicolombo is a stack of three spacecraft: the propulsion module, @esa_mtm, the @esa orbiter, @esa_bepi, & the @jaxa_en orbiter, @jaxa_mmo. They only separate when we finally enter Mercury orbit in 2025.

2/
@BepiColombo @ESA_MTM @esa @ESA_Bepi @JAXA_en @JAXA_MMO Some of the science instruments, including the main science camera, SYMBIO-SYS, are sandwiched between the MTM & the European orbiter, MPO, at this stage, due to the way the MPO has been designed to work once the spacecraft reach Mercury.

3/
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Related hashtags

#Uplink #Akatsuki #VenusExpress #BepiColomboVenusFlyby

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