Reaching Mercury is such a challenge because “the gravitational pull of the Sun is very strong near Mercury, which makes it difficult for spacecraft to slow down enough to enter orbit around the planet,” explains Lina Hadid, staff scientist at CNRS in France and principal investigator of one of BepiColombo’s instruments.

The BepiColombo mission recently made its sixth flyby of Mercury, snapping some images along the way.The Latest Tech News, Delivered to Your Inbox

Enigmatic planet Mercury posed for some closeups when the BepiColombo mission flew by. Craters, bright regions and volcanic plains star in the best views from the flyby.

A spacecraft named BepiColombo is currently zipping by planet Mercury, making a very close flyby and snapping incredible high-def photos.

In a thrilling close approach, the BepiColombo mission captured its final, stunning images of Mercury before its orbit insertion in 2026. Revealing icy craters and expansive volcanic plains, these pho

This is already the sixth mission of the BepiColombo probe in Mercury's orbit. This time, it approached the most minor planet in the Solar System to a distance of just 295 kilometres. Closer looks at the icy craters are impressive.