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Mars Express Orbiter Buzzes Martian Moon Phobos

Posted by Unknown on from the watch-out-for-imps dept.

astroengine writes "On Sunday, at 5:17 p.m. GMT (12:17 p.m. EST), Europe's Mars Express orbiter successfully completed a daring low-pass of Mars' largest moon Phobos. In an effort to precisely measure the gravitational field of the moon, the 10 year-old mission was sent on a trajectory that took it only 45 kilometers (28 miles) from the dusty surface, the closest any spacecraft has ever come to the natural satellite."

1 of 39 comments (clear)

  1. Small...very small moon. by dubdays · · Score: 4, Informative

    The dimensions of this moon is only 13.4 × 11.2 × 9.2 km. Pretty tiny, it seems to me, for a planet the size of Mars.