BepiColombo

Where it stands

Arrival under way: the Mercury Transfer Module separated on 3 September 2026, and on 24 September the Mercury Planetary Orbiter fired its axial thrusters for 8 minutes 42 seconds, an 11.4 m/s push and the first planned trajectory correction since separation, on course for Mercury orbit insertion on 21 November 2026.

The mission

BepiColombo, ESA's joint mission with JAXA, completed its sixth and final Mercury flyby on 8 January 2025 and shut down its solar electric propulsion on 24 June 2026, closing out the powered cruise. On 3 September 2026 the Mercury Transfer Module separated from the stack more than 200 million kilometres from Earth, after an eight-year journey of 9.9 billion kilometres. On 24 September the Mercury Planetary Orbiter tested its axial thrusters in this configuration for the first time, firing for 8 minutes 42 seconds for an 11.4 m/s correction. ESA describes arrival as a six-month sequence: orbit insertion on 21 November, Mio's separation on 9 to 10 December, the Mercury Planetary Orbiter reaching its final science orbit in March 2027, and science from both orbiters from April 2027. ESA’s 6 October update reports that all Mercury Planetary Orbiter science instruments were switched on on 15 September and were healthy. Mercury capture remains scheduled for 21 November, with orbiter separation on 9–10 December and science operations from April 2027.

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