Mercury's magnetosphere begins to be unveiled

Mercury, like the Earth, has its own magnetic field. The zone it creates around the planet, called the magnetosphere, is at the center of fundamental processes that are still poorly understood. 

The BepiColombo probe flew over Mercury in 2023, providing new information on the dynamics of this magnetosphere, thanks in part to the MSA ion mass spectrometer to which the Plasma Physics Laboratory (LPP*) contributed. In 2026, BepiColombo will enter orbit around the planet to further reveal the magnetosphere.

To find out more:

European Space Agency press release : https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/BepiColombo/Mercury_s_magnetic_landscape_mapped_in_30_minutes

The CNRS press release:

https://www.insu.cnrs.fr/fr/cnrsinfo/un-nouveau-paysage-magnetospherique-revele-par-bepicolombomio

These results were published in Communications physics :

Hadid, L.Z., Delcourt, D., Harada, Y. et al. Mercury’s plasma environment after BepiColombo’s third flyby. Commun Phys 7, 316 (2024). 

*LPP: a joint research unit CNRS, Observatoire de Paris-PSL, Sorbonne Université, Université Paris-Saclay, École Polytechnique-Institut Polytechnique de Paris, 91120 Palaiseau, France