Hera spacecraft takes photos of red planet’s second moon, Deimos, while en route to asteroids 110m miles away

A European spacecraft has taken photos of Mars’s smaller and more mysterious second moon during its flight past the planet en route to a pair of asteroids more than 110m miles (177m km) away.

The Hera probe activated a suite of instruments to capture images of the red planet and Deimos, a small and lumpy 8-mile-wide moon, which orbits Mars along with the 14-mile-wide Phobos.

HELSINKI — China is inviting interested parties to submit proposals to join the country’s pioneering Mars sample return mission, due to launch in late 2028. The China National Space Administration […]

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