Cameras calibrated by BME researchers pass the Mars test

On 12 March, the European Space Agency's (ESA) Hera spacecraft approached Mars at a distance of about 5,000 kilometres and performed a swing-by manoeuvre. The main purpose was to accelerate the probe, but the ESA team also took advantage of the planet's proximity to test optical cameras and take some photos. "The calibration of the AFC cameras and the hyperspectral Hyperscout instrument was carried out by the Department of Mechatronics, Optics and Machanical Engineering Informatics (MOGI) of the BME," according to Associate Professor Balázs Vince Nagy.

The surface of Mars with Deimos

The images of the surface of Mars and its smaller and more mysterious moon, Deimos, as well as their calibrated versions, are stored on BME servers, from where they can be downloaded by the international scientific community. "Both the instruments and the servers tested well during the quick visit to Mars and are moving on to their final destination, the Didimos-Dimorphos asteroid complex," Balázs Vince Nagy told bme.hu.

The surface of Mars with Deimos

The Hera mission is part of ESA's planetary defence programme. The probe is expected to provide valuable information for future asteroid-interceptor missions, helping to understand the geophysics of small planets and the formation and evolution of the Solar System. Little is known about asteroid matter and matter density, thus it would be difficult to plan diverting a small planet from its orbit.

Deimos in the distance

Launched last October from Cape Canaveral in Florida, Hera carries two mini-satellites that will get into orbit when destination is reached, probably in 2027, to take images and measurements (and one of them is even scheduled to land on the surface of Dimorphos). To test the optical cameras, manufactures by six different companies, an independent laboratory was needed, and the MOGI Department was asked to provide this service.

Read more about the mission here.

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