During its June 2023 flyby of Mercury, the BepiColombo spacecraft gathered significant data on the planet’s magnetic field, revealing features of its magnetosphere.

Mercury has a magnetic field about 100 times weaker than Earth’s, but it interacts intensely with the solar wind due to the planet’s proximity to the sun.

BepiColombo will arrive in orbit around Mercury in 2026, using gravity assists from Earth, Venus, and Mercury to adjust its trajectory.

The spacecraft’s flybys enable scientists to gather data from areas not accessible from orbit.

The Mercury Plasma Particle Experiment (MPPE) instruments captured detailed measurements of particle types, temperatures, and movements during the brief flyby, which lasted only 30 minutes.

Findings included expected structures like shock boundaries and surprise detections of a turbulent plasma layer at the magnetosphere’s edge, as well as a potential ring current of charged particles, Phys.org has reported.

These observations provide insights into Mercury’s surface and magnetosphere interactions, with further analysis anticipated from the dual orbiters once they begin full operations.

Upcoming flybys in December 2024 and January 2025 will continue to enhance understanding of Mercury’s magnetic and plasma environments.

Written by B.C. Begley