Sign-up to receive weekly Space email updates with news, commentary, photos, videos and more!
Comprehensive insight, context and analysis of technologies, business developments and operational trends in every segment of global aviation and aerospace.
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report is relied upon for the latest, critical intelligence on programs, budgets and policies in defense, as well as military and civil space.
Incentives can be important drivers of innovation. See how prizes are spurring change.
Check out articles, white papers, interactive features and more.
Learn about new manufacturing technologies that are helping to boost performance and cut costs.
View articles from Aviation Week publications and white papers and views sponsored by Makino
Brought to you by: , , , and
ESA's Mars Express photographed Phobos from a distance of just 100km during the last of eight flybys of the martian moon on Jan 9. As a result, says the German Aerospace Center (DLR), researchers has been able to image the southern hemisphere of the 20km-wide moon with a resolution of just 3.8m per pixel.Images: ESAFor those of you with the glasses, ESA has posted a 3D version of the image:Because of the speed of the flyby - 2.3km/sec - Mars Express was programmed to slew during the rendezvous to keep the spacecraft's High Resolutiuon Stereo Camera pointed at Phobos. Even then, Mars Express could only turn at 0.15deg/sec, rather than the 0.26deg/sec needed, so the images needed tweaking in post-processing.DLR says the images will be used in planning Russia's Phobos Grunt mission, set to begin in November. This includes plans for a lander to touch down on the moon, collect rock and dust samples, and return them by capsule to Earth. The lander will then spend a year on the surface of Phobos, measuring the martian environment.
Tags: os99, Mars, ESA