BepiColombo

High school (ages 12+)
Space & Astronomy

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/bepicolombo

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the collaborating space agencies?European Space Agency (ESA) and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA)
2. What is the primary target?Mercury
3. What is BepiColombo and why is it traveling to Mercury?BepiColombo is a space mission by ESA and JAXA that uses two orbiters to study Mercury, the fastest planet in our solar system.
4. How does BepiColombo get to Mercury?It uses a series of flybys of Earth, Venus, and Mercury to slow down and let the Sun’s gravity help it reach the planet.

Astrodynamics: The study of the motion of spacecraft and the forces that affect them.
Planetary Differentiation: The process by which planets separate into layers based on density.
Solar Nebula: The cloud of gas and dust from which the Sun and planets formed.