SIMBIO-SYS: Scientific Cameras and Spectrometer for the BepiColombo Mission

Abstract

The SIMBIO-SYS (Spectrometer and Imaging for MPO BepiColombo Integrated Observatory SYStem) is a complex instrument suite part of the scientific payload of the Mercury Planetary Orbiter for the BepiColombo mission, the last of the cornerstone missions of the European Space Agency (ESA) Horizon + science program. The SIMBIO-SYS instrument will provide all the science imaging capability of the Bepi-Colombo MPO spacecraft. It consists of three channels: the STereo imaging Channel (STC), with a broad spectral band in the 400-950 nm range and medium spatial resolution (at best 58 m/px), that will provide Digital Terrain Model of the entire surface of the planet with an accuracy better than 80 m; the High Resolution Imaging Channel (HRIC), with broad spectral bands in the 400-900 nm range and high spatial resolution (at best 6 m/px), that will pro-The BepiColombo mission to Mercury Edited by Johannes Benkhoff, Go Murakami and Ayako Matsuoka B G. Cremonese

Near‐Ultraviolet to Near‐Infrared Spectral Properties of Hollows on Mercury: Implications for Origin and Formation Process

“…This instrument has higher spatial resolution (up to 100 m/pixel), a higher signal‐to‐noise ratio, and a wider range of wavelength (0.4–2 µm) than MASCS. The future VIHI global coverage (at 480 m/pixel) and high‐resolution images (which will cover 20% of the surface) will extend the MASCS results obtained in hollows (Cremonese et al., 2020). These observations of different hollows will provide additional insight into the nature and processes of hollow formation.…”

“…The BepiColombo mission is equipped with an instrumental suite (Cremonese et al., 2020; Flamini et al., 2010) including a hyperspectral imager: VIHI. This instrument has higher spatial resolution (up to 100 m/pixel), a higher signal‐to‐noise ratio, and a wider range of wavelength (0.4–2 µm) than MASCS.…”

“…Determination of the nature and rate of hollow formation process is one of the objectives of the BepiColombo mission to Mercury (Rothery et al, 2020). In particular, VIHI (Visual and Infrared Hyperspectral Imager) on the instrumental suite SIMBIO-SYS (Spectrometer and Imaging for MPO BepiColombo Integrated Observatory SYS-tem; Cremonese et al, 2020;Flamini et al, 2010) should be able to confirm the validity of the scenario proposed in Figure 14. The spatial resolution of this instrument (up to 100 m/pixel) is represented on the Figure 14c.…”

Meteoroids as One of the Sources for Exosphere Formation on Airless Bodies in the Inner Solar System

“…An exciting possibility is the direct detection of impact flashes by stream meteoroids, despite the short-lived and upredictable nature of the phenomenon. The observation of the flashes will represent a serendipity project of SIMBIO-SYS (Cremonese et al 2020), the suite of cameras on board the MPO, when it will observe the dark hemisphere of Mercury for calibration purposes.…”

The BepiColombo Mercury Imaging X-Ray Spectrometer: Science Goals, Instrument Performance and Operations

“…This will allow more accurate calculation of the expected photon flux on the MIXS FPAs. Combined with state-of-the-art numerical light-scattering modeling in the visible and near-infrared spectral range (e.g., Penttilä et al 2020), the MIXS/SIXS and SIMBIO-SYS (Cremonese et al 2020, this issue) instruments offer great promise for constraining the physical and chemical properties of the Hermean regolith. Fig.…”