The Mercury Radiometer and Thermal Infrared Spectrometer (MERTIS) is part of the ESA-JAXA BepiColombo science payload en-route to Mercury. On April 10th 2020, BepiColombo flyby the Earth and obtained data from the Moon surface at a distance of around 700,000 km. The MERTIS thermal-infrared spectrometer (TIS) operating between 7 μm and 14 μm recorded more than 9,600 single hyperspectral observations of the Moon through its space baffle built for deep-space calibration. MERTIS has been designed to observe the surface of Mercury at a spatial resolution more than 1000 times better and at temperatures up to 2 times greater than that of the Moon. Therefore, lunar observations present a significant challenge for the instrument and the team. The standard acquisition procedure and the operations software were adapted to obtain data during the BepiColombo cruise phase. A specific calibration procedure and spatial binning have been developed to obtain the best radiometric data from the lunar surface. The calibrated data demonstrate the exceptional performance of the instrument, developed for a very different planetary object, comparable with ground-based measurements. The observations made during the cruise phase are very promising for future observations of Mercury with the space baffle during the fifth Mercury flyby scheduled for December 2024 and the nominal nadir viewing port (planet baffle) in orbit around Mercury.
The MErcury Radiometer and Thermal infrared Imaging Spectrometer (MERTIS) is a highly integrated instrument to study mineralogy and temperature distribution of Mercury’s surface in unprecedented quality. MERTIS was proposed in 2003 as payload of the Mercury Planetary Orbiter spacecraft of the joint ESA-JAXA BepiColombo mission. With the planned launch on top of an Ariane 5 in October of 2018, the mission will soon start its 7 years journey to Mercury. On its way to Mercury, BepiColombo will have 2 flybys of Venus and one of the Earth-Moon system. MERTIS will obtain data during each of these flybys – for Venus the first mid-infrared spectral data since Venera 15 in 1983. After arrival at Mercury in 2025 MERTIS will globally map the surface composition with a resolution of 500m, and study surface temperature variations providing an insight into the thermo-physical properties of the surface. To achieve this, MERTIS combines a push-broom IR grating spectrometer (TIS) with a radiometer (TIR) sharing the same optics, instrument electronics and in-flight calibration components for the whole wavelength range of 7-14 μm (TIS) and 7-40 μm (TIR), respectively. Instrument operations in the challenging environment at Mercury with power and data constraints require a sophisticated mapping scheme for the TIS observations, which also has to account for the MERTIS calibration needs. Execution of this scheme creates challenges for the operation of the instruments, data processing, and the creation of map products. Extensive onground testing and rehearsals during the Venus and Earth flybys will ensure flawless performance at Mercury.
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