Our Solar System is out there doing its thing every hour of the day and year. Sometimes – if we’re in the right place at the right time – we get to see that thing from a new perspective.
We couldn’t be happier that a little spacecraft was located over 100 million km (62 million miles).
The European Space Agency is busy monitoring the red earth, and going about its normal business. MarsExpress probe recently captured an eclipseDeimos, a smaller Martian moon. JupiterIt has four. Galilean moons.
Mars was separated by 745 million kilometers at the time, but Deimos, the Jovian system and Mars looked like one happy couple for a few moments.
The alignment of these astronomical bodies were captured on camera on February 14, 2022. This was followed by 80 images which were then combined into a movie.
“Such an alignment,” ESA stated in a statement“It’s extremely unusual, because Deimos must precisely be in the orbital plan of Jupiter’s moons for alignment to occur.”
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The video shows Deimos. Only 15 km longIt slowly moves across the screen, moving left to right. As it moves, it occults the ice moon Europa (or giant moon Ganymede), which appear as tiny, star-like dots. The disk of Jupiter follows, followed by the volcanic Moon Io and Callisto.
This allowed Mars scientists to measure Deimos’ orbit and position more precisely. It is difficult to measure from Earth because the moons of Mars are so small and dim. Understanding their orbits could be the key to understanding their origin. It is unclear if Deimos or Phobos, the larger of the two moons of Deimos, were once part a larger body that was broken apart or just a passing. asteroidThis was captured by Mars’ gravity.
Scientists can better predict what will happen to Mars’ moons in future by better describing their orbits. Scientists believe that Phobos will soon be moving towards Mars, and will be so close in the next 100million years that its gravity will become apparent. Take the moon to shredsThe temporary Phobos Ring around the planet was formed.
Deimos is, however, slowly moving away Mars. If it continues to move away from Mars, scientists expect it to eventually escape Mars’ gravitational hold and become its own entity in the large-scale Solar System.
Nothing lasts forever. The relationship between a satellite and its moons is not permanent.
