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.
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Exploring our Solar System and unlocking the secrets of the Universe
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Hera’s Asteroid Framing Camera (AFC) captured this farewell image of Earth (bottom left) and the Moon (centre) on 11 October from a distance of approximately 1.6 million km. Earth is oriented with north pointing upwards, with the Pacific Ocean illuminated by the Sun.
Incorporating two baffle-protected cameras for redundancy, each of Hera’s two Asteroid Framing Cameras is a 1020x1020 monochrome visible light sensor. The cameras are used both for navigation and for scientific investigation and were produced by Jena-Optronik in Germany, based on its ASTROhead design.