The European Space Agency (ESA) is Europe’s gateway to space. Its mission is to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space continues to deliver benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world.
Find out more about space activities in our 23 Member States, and understand how ESA works together with their national agencies, institutions and organisations.
Exploring our Solar System and unlocking the secrets of the Universe
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Go to topicUsing space to benefit citizens and meet future challenges on Earth
Go to topicMaking space accessible and developing the technologies for the future
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The BepiColombo PHEBUS spectrometer made its first measurements of Mercury’s tenuous atmosphere (exosphere) during the 1-2 October 2021 close flyby of the planet. The two brightest detections are shown in this uncalibrated quick-look data plot, highlighting the presence of calcium and hydrogen. The emission is seen as a function of time, which peaked once BepiColombo exited the shadow of Mercury (dotted region), shortly after closest approach.
The green line represents the distance from Mercury.