Earth sure looks spooky in these 'hyperspectral' images from Europe's Hera asteroid probe

several rows of earth in false color
Earth shines in eerie colors in several spectral (light wavelength) observations by Hera, a European Space Agency spacecraft that launched recently to study a binary asteroid system. (Image credit: European Space Agency)

A strange Earth shines in new imagery captured by a European asteroid mission.

The Hera spacecraft, which launched this month to study a binary asteroid system up close. turned its gaze back at our planet to capture spooky views of Earth in multiple wavelengths of light. The imagery was captured fro roughly 1.25 million miles (2 million kilometers) away, using Hera's HyperScout H hyperspectral imager.

Besides being beautiful space art, the imagery "allows us to observe cloud patterns on our planet", instrument team member Marcel Popescu of Romania's University of Craiova said in a European Space Agency (ESA) statement released today (Oct. 31). Popescu paraphrased planetary scientist and space popularizer Carl Sagan (1934-1996): "All our lives are contained within these few pixels.”

The Hera mission, led by ESA, launched Oct. 7 atop a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in coastal Florida.

Related: SpaceX rocket launches Europe's Hera planetary defense probe to visit asteroid smacked by NASA

Hera's mission calls for the spacecraft to arrive at an asteroid pair in 2026 to follow up on NASA's Double Asteroid Redirect Mission, or DART for short. The smaller asteroid moonlet, called Dimorphos, was directly impacted by DART. The orbit of Dimorphos around its larger companion, Didymos, was permanently altered by the collision.

DART demonstrated a planetary defense strategy that could be useful in moving threatening asteroids away from Earth. Hera's job is to look at the collision's aftermath from up close, given that DART's impact has only been examined by telescopes to date. HyperScout H, the Hera instrument that just observed Earth, will examine the mineral composition of Dimorphos when it arrives.

"This first calibration test was an exciting experience, which showed that both the instrument and its data processing chain are working well," said instrument principal investigator Julia de León, of the Institute of Astrophysics of the Canary Islands, in the same statement.

Join our Space Forums to keep talking space on the latest missions, night sky and more! And if you have a news tip, correction or comment, let us know at: community@space.com.

Elizabeth Howell
Staff Writer, Spaceflight

Elizabeth Howell (she/her), Ph.D., is a staff writer in the spaceflight channel since 2022 covering diversity, education and gaming as well. She was contributing writer for Space.com for 10 years before joining full-time. Elizabeth's reporting includes multiple exclusives with the White House and Office of the Vice-President of the United States, an exclusive conversation with aspiring space tourist (and NSYNC bassist) Lance Bass, speaking several times with the International Space Station, witnessing five human spaceflight launches on two continents, flying parabolic, working inside a spacesuit, and participating in a simulated Mars mission. Her latest book, "Why Am I Taller?", is co-written with astronaut Dave Williams. Elizabeth holds a Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Space Studies from the University of North Dakota, a Bachelor of Journalism from Canada's Carleton University and a Bachelor of History from Canada's Athabasca University. Elizabeth is also a post-secondary instructor in communications and science at several institutions since 2015; her experience includes developing and teaching an astronomy course at Canada's Algonquin College (with Indigenous content as well) to more than 1,000 students since 2020. Elizabeth first got interested in space after watching the movie Apollo 13 in 1996, and still wants to be an astronaut someday. Mastodon: https://qoto.org/@howellspace