1.0European Space Agency Trackerhttps://scienceblog.com/esaESA Trackerhttps://scienceblog.com/esa/author/esawatcher/rich600338<blockquote class="wp-embedded-content" data-secret="CphdfbiHiB"><a href="https://scienceblog.com/esa/2025/04/16/heras-mars-moon-close-up/">Hera’s Mars & Moon Close-Up</a></blockquote><iframe sandbox="allow-scripts" security="restricted" src="https://scienceblog.com/esa/2025/04/16/heras-mars-moon-close-up/embed/#?secret=CphdfbiHiB" width="600" height="338" title="“Hera’s Mars & Moon Close-Up” — European Space Agency Tracker" data-secret="CphdfbiHiB" frameborder="0" marginwidth="0" marginheight="0" scrolling="no" class="wp-embedded-content"></iframe><script> /*! This file is auto-generated */ !function(d,l){"use strict";l.querySelector&&d.addEventListener&&"undefined"!=typeof URL&&(d.wp=d.wp||{},d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage||(d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage=function(e){var t=e.data;if((t||t.secret||t.message||t.value)&&!/[^a-zA-Z0-9]/.test(t.secret)){for(var s,r,n,a=l.querySelectorAll('iframe[data-secret="'+t.secret+'"]'),o=l.querySelectorAll('blockquote[data-secret="'+t.secret+'"]'),c=new RegExp("^https?:$","i"),i=0;i<o.length;i++)o[i].style.display="none";for(i=0;i<a.length;i++)s=a[i],e.source===s.contentWindow&&(s.removeAttribute("style"),"height"===t.message?(1e3<(r=parseInt(t.value,10))?r=1e3:~~r<200&&(r=200),s.height=r):"link"===t.message&&(r=new URL(s.getAttribute("src")),n=new URL(t.value),c.test(n.protocol))&&n.host===r.host&&l.activeElement===s&&(d.top.location.href=t.value))}},d.addEventListener("message",d.wp.receiveEmbedMessage,!1),l.addEventListener("DOMContentLoaded",function(){for(var e,t,s=l.querySelectorAll("iframe.wp-embedded-content"),r=0;r<s.length;r++)(t=(e=s[r]).getAttribute("data-secret"))||(t=Math.random().toString(36).substring(2,12),e.src+="#?secret="+t,e.setAttribute("data-secret",t)),e.contentWindow.postMessage({message:"ready",secret:t},"*")},!1)))}(window,document); //# sourceURL=https://scienceblog.com/esa/wp-includes/js/wp-embed.min.js </script> https://scienceblog.com/esa/wp-content/uploads/sites/13/2025/04/Sir_Brian_May_and_the_rest_of_Hera_s_science_team_see_Mars_image_arrive_pillars.jpg900600On March 12, 2025, ESA’s Hera spacecraft pulled off something pretty special—a rare close flyby of Mars and its tiny moon Deimos. The spacecraft flew just 5,000 kilometers above the Martian surface and skimmed within 300 kilometers of Deimos. During the pass, Hera’s Asteroid Framing Camera captured stunning footage, later enhanced with color to highlight known surface features. The result? A rare and breathtaking look at these two distant worlds.