After launch in 2013, the BepiColombo cruise-composite spacecraft will start its six-year interplanetary journey to Mercury.
During the cruise, the spacecraft will be accelerated by solar-electric propulsion, and it will receive gravity assists from Earth, Venus (twice) and Mercury (twice). Once at Mercury in 2019, the Mercury Planetary Orbiter (MPO) and the Mercury Magnetospheric Orbiter (MMO) will be injected into their respective orbits by means of conventional (chemical) propulsion.
The science operations will last at least one Earth-year, possibly extended by one additional Earth-year.
Note: This artist's impression reflects the spacecraft concept of the time when it was published. The design has changed in the meantime and thus this image is no longer up-to-date. For the latest images of BepiColombo, please check the most recently added images in our gallery.