Launched on 7 October 2024, Hera used a Mars flyby in March 2025 to set its course for arrival at Didymos and Dimorphos in late 2026. On 11 May 2025, the spacecraft turned toward Otero from roughly three million kilometers away, tracking it for three hours to assess detection and pointing capabilities.
ESA's Flight Dynamics and Mission Analysis teams selected Otero for its brightness and well-known orbit. The operation required rapid planning, with the Flight Dynamics and Flight Control teams preparing slews and imaging sequences in just weeks. The resulting time-lapse images showed the asteroid's slow drift across the star field.
Flight Dynamics Engineer Giacomo Moresco noted that early sighting of Didymos will present similar challenges. Identifying and keeping the asteroid centered in the camera's field of view is critical for navigation and science during approach.
In July, Hera targeted the far fainter Kellyday, which appeared about 40 times dimmer than Otero. This pushed both the camera's faint-object detection and ESA's image processing limits, but the asteroid was successfully identified.
Beyond engineering value, the operations demonstrated Hera's ability to execute precise, rapid observations of new targets. Such responsiveness could aid planetary defence, for instance, by characterizing newly discovered near-Earth objects or even interstellar visitors if a spacecraft is suitably positioned.
These tests bolster confidence in Hera's readiness to investigate the aftermath of NASA's DART impact at Dimorphos and refine asteroid deflection into a proven planetary defence technique.
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Hera
Asteroid and Comet Mission News, Science and Technology
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