The BepiColombo mission separated from the module that carried it to Mercury, in a historic moment that marks the final stretch of the journey to the smallest and least explored planet in the Solar System. The separation occurred at a distance of 200 million kilometres from Earth.
The transfer module, also known as the Mercury Transfer Module, served for eight years as the engine and power source for the BepiColombo spacecraft, making the long journey to Mercury possible. This component was essential for propelling and orienting the spacecraft throughout the entire trajectory.
After separation, the module was left alone in an orbit around the Sun, completely isolated from the main spacecraft. This phase marks the end of a crucial stage of the mission, which involved collaboration between the European Space Agency and JAXA, the Japanese space agency.
With this separation, BepiColombo now enters the final phase of its journey to Mercury, where it will aim to study the composition, structure, and magnetic field of the planet.
