It looks huge compared to the Red Planet, but the Moon Deimos is only 12 kilometers in diameter.
The hope probe of United Arab Emirates It has been orbiting Mars for two years. Yesterday he sent a spectacular photo of the moon deimosand ensures that he has discovered its origin.
Mars has two moons Deimos and Phobos. With only 12 kilometers in diameter, Deimos is the one that orbits farthest. It takes 30.3 hours to go around the planet.
we have a few photos of the moon deimos, since the Viking probe photographed it a few decades ago. but none so sharpnor from so close, as the one sent by the hope probe of United Arab Emirates. And the photo comes with a surprise, which will be revealed in a few hours.
The mystery of the moon Deimos of Mars
The United Arab Emirates Hope probe reached Mars in 2021, slightly before NASA’s Perseverance. Shortly after arriving he sent a spectacular image of the planet, and its 14,000 meter high volcanoes.
It will orbit Mars for several years at a distance of about 25,000 kilometers, without actually landing on the planet. It’s a much wider orbit than other probes, which come much closer to take images of its surface.
Hope It does not intend to study its geography, but its climate, as well as the presence of water, ozone, and other compounds in the atmosphere of Mars.
Last summer, the hope probe slightly changed its course, to approach the moon deimos up to a distance of only 100 kilometers, the closest a human ship has ever been. This is how he was able to capture the spectacular photo that you can see in the opening image of the news, or in the tweet below.
But photography is not the most important thing. the probe too scanned Deimos with the ultraviolet and infrared spectrometers. Thanks to them, according to Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum on his Twitter account, they have revealed the origin of the moon:
Until now, due to its small size, it was believed that Deimos was a asteroid that it had been trapped by the gravity of Mars. But the sheikh and Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates, assures in the previous tweet that Deimos is part of Mars. We assume that it was detached from the planet by some impact, just like our Moon.
Today, in a few hours, the investigation will be presented, where they will supposedly provide the evidence that demonstrates this statement.
The hope probe of United Arab Emirates has sent us the sharper photo of the moon deimos of Marsand claims to have discovered its origin. Space is no longer just a matter of the United States, Russia or China.