First light: Hera resolves two asteroids instead of one

Key Points:

• The European Space Agency’s Hera spacecraft has successfully resolved the two asteroids in the Didymos binary system separately for the first time, capturing images from 1280 km away.
• The smaller asteroid, Dimorphos, about 151 meters across, is now clearly visible distinct from its parent body Didymos, which is 780 meters in diameter; the pair orbit each other approximately 1.15 km apart.
• Hera’s recent braking maneuvers slowed the spacecraft to 20 m/s relative velocity, enabling closer and more detailed observations of the asteroid pair.
• Following NASA’s DART impact on Dimorphos in 2022, Hera aims to investigate the impact site to understand the asteroid’s structure, crater formation, and the effects of the kinetic impact on its orbit.
• Hera will continue close-up studies, including deploying CubeSats and eventually landing on Dimorphos, while also engaging the public through the Hera Space Companion AI communication platform.