Hera sees Didymos and Dimorphos for the first time: European probe reaches the asteroids hit by DART

The European probe Hera sent its first image on October 27 showing Didymos and its moon Dimorphos as two separate bodies, ESA said. It was taken from 1,280 kilometres away, with the system about 197 million kilometres from Earth.

Hera fired its braking thrusters twice, a week apart, to slow to 20 metres per second relative to the asteroids. "For the very first time we are seeing through Hera's own eyes," said mission manager Ian Carnelli.

The impact site

Didymos is 780 metres across and Dimorphos 151 metres. NASA's DART probe struck Dimorphos on September 26, 2022 and shortened its orbit by about 33 minutes, in the first test of asteroid deflection. Hera is to measure the effects of the impact and Dimorphos's mass, so the method can be used to defend Earth.