Hera has returned its first close-up of the Didymos asteroid system from 60 km away. The new image reveals boulders and grooves on the larger body’s previously unseen face, while its small companion remains largely in shadow. Scientists will investigate whether some surface material came from the earlier impact on that companion.
The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Hera spacecraft has sent back its first close-up of the Didymos binary asteroid system. Released on 5 November, the image was taken from 60 km away. Didymos, the larger body, dominates the view; most of its smaller companion Dimorphos remains in shadow. The new picture reveals the side of Didymos opposite the one seen during the earlier impact mission.[1], [2]
Didymos is about 780 m across, compared with 151 m for Dimorphos. Hera’s monochrome camera shows an equatorial ridge along with boulders, craters and features resembling grooves or ridges. Mission principal investigator Patrick Michel identifies this as a newly accessible side of the larger asteroid.[1]
Mission scientist Michael Kueppers suggests some material thrown from Dimorphos during the impact may have crossed the roughly 1 km gap to Didymos. That possible transfer is one explanation scientists will investigate as further images reveal more terrain.[1]
The US National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) struck Dimorphos in 2022, shortening its orbit around Didymos by about 33 minutes. Hera’s close investigation will examine the physical aftermath of that experiment, including surface changes. ESA plans to release more detailed pictures of both asteroids on 25 November.[1]
