European Spacecraft Hera Captures First-of-Their-Kind Images of Mars and Moon Deimos

The ESA mission used Mars' gravity to adjust its course toward an asteroid pair while collecting groundbreaking visual and thermal data.

The European Space Agency's (ESA) spacecraft Hera flew past Mars on March 12, capturing detailed images of the planet and its smaller moon, Deimos, from unique perspectives.
Hera's flyby leveraged Mars' gravitational pull to adjust its trajectory toward its ultimate destination: the asteroid pair Didymos and Dimorphos, which it is set to study in 2026.
The spacecraft recorded over 600 images within a 30-minute window, including thermal and hyperspectral data, revealing that Deimos is warmer than Mars due to the planet's cooling atmosphere.
Scientists aim to use the new data to better understand the origins of Mars' moons, which may either be captured asteroids or fragments from a past collision with the planet.
The mission is part of ESA's planetary defense program, designed to study asteroids and develop methods to protect Earth from potential future impacts.