Hera spacecraft with solar wing deployed

ESA’s Hera asteroid mission for planetary defence seen with one of its two solar wings added, during its continuing test campaign at the ESTEC Test Centre in the Nethelands.

The van-sized spacecraft, left, is powered by a pair of solar array wings, made up of three panels each, provided by Beyond Gravity in Switzerland.

One of these 5-m-long wings was added for Hera’s ‘cold deployment check’ – a manual unfolding process to confirm that the wing fits correctly. Because the solar wings have been designed to operate in weightlessness they were supported by a frame during this test deployment.